Chaos OneHalf
by ReDragon37
Summary: (Chapter 7 up) A different Ranma shows up on the Tendo's doorstep. What happens when TWO avatars of Chaos occupy ONE body?
1. Episode 01: Here's Ranma! Or Not

Intro: Okay, I shall now take a moment from my pessimistic weeping to inform you of a tiny  
little important fact. This is going to suck. Big-time. Feel free to contradict that statement.   
  
I know, I'm a BAD boy for starting another fic with one already in progress, but the idea popped  
into my head and wouldn't go away. And I'm already a slow writer... Jeeze, this is going to drag  
my update times waaaaaay down. Anyway, this one's kind of an Alternate-Universe -because- of  
a Self-Insert. The only person who's SUPPOSED to be different is Ranma/Randy. Well, Randy's  
not ME, exactly. Just my -character- from my other fic, Finishing Moves. Although, he IS me.  
Sort of. I mean if you want to get technical, it's only a SEMI self-insert... I'll shut up now.  
  
Disclaimer: Ranma??? Who's that?  
  
------------{ Chaos 1/2 }------------  
  
------{ Episode 01: Here's Ranma! Or Not. }------  
  
It was a dark and stormy night. Well, actually, it was daytime, and the rain was only a light  
drizzle, but it's a start. The few citizens of Nerima that hadn't locked themselves inside and were  
outside in this weather were a little nervous, and for a good reason. The Chaos had not caused  
anything weird to happen lately. Oh sure, laugh all you want. As any decent, long living citizen  
of this particular ward of Tokyo would tell you, The Chaos was real. Oh, there was no real proof  
to be seen, but what else could explain the weird happenings that revolved around Nerima. Why,  
just last week, there was that incident involving Tokugawa-san and his bucket of cats! Exactly.  
Trust me, you don't want to know...  
  
Getting back on track, The Chaos hadn't made anything weird happen lately. Which was more  
than a little nerve-wracking to a fine, upstanding, and sane resident of Nerima. Just to clear  
things up, you understand. If you avoided thinking about the oxymoron brought about by Chaos  
having a pattern, then you could say (hypothetically, of course) that Chaos did indeed have a  
pattern. Yes, the strange incidents caused by The Chaos' meddling were random, as were the time  
that they occurred. However, it almost seemed as if the incidents happened on a regular monthly  
basis, then dwindled down to nothing for another month or so. The reason for the citizens'  
concern was now apparent if you considered the fact that it had been a little over a month since  
anything REALLY weird had happened. Yeah, and you thought the cats were weird. They don't  
happen to count.  
  
Don't worry, be happy. Or try anyway. The Chaos is about to begin! ...... Hey, where'd  
everybody go??  
  
Ooookay... Moving right along, let's take the time to introduce to you the ONLY family in  
Nerima at least giving the appearance of NOT being affected by The Chaos. The Tendos. That's  
right, the Tendos. A rather common name if you actually think about it. But let's not...   
  
The Tendo family was only a LITTLE on the strange side. The father, Soun Tendo, or Tendo  
Soun, whichever you prefer, was a part of the district council, so he couldn't have been TOO  
weird. Soun was a thin, middle-aged man with shoulder length black hair and a mustache. He  
also had a habit of wearing an old brown Martial Arts gi, probably for sentimental reasons. His  
wife had died of a severe illness a few years ago and had left the man an emotional wreck.  
  
The first daughter, Kasumi, was a little on the tall side, especially for a Japanese. Being  
nine-teen and graduated from high school, she contented herself with filling in for her mother.  
She did most of the chores around the house, made the meals, washed the clothes, et cetera, et  
cetera... Soft brown hair was pulled into a pony-tail and was kept out of the way by being pulled  
over her left shoulder to the front. Being a traditional housewife-ish sort, she wore the traditional  
housewife-ish apron over whatever dress she wore for the day. A soft-spoken soul, she never  
raised her voice and had a tendency to play peacemaker.  
  
The second daughter, Nabiki, was best described as a mercenary, being well known for her  
sarcasm and her confident smirk as she bled you of your money before you could say Nabiki  
Tendo. That being her reputation. The real Nabiki put her family first, though she tried not to  
show it, and was also a little boy-crazy. She handled the finances, seeing as how her father was  
not in any condition to do so, and kept up with the bills with the money she gained from running  
the local betting pool at school, among other things. Her short brown hair was kept well  
conditioned and had a smooth shine to it. She tended to wear clothes that looked tight on her  
admittedly well-toned body. She was seven-teen and in her last year of high school.  
  
The third and last daughter, Akane, was six-teen years old and the most popular girl in school.  
Somewhat tomboy-ish, she was still a nice girl, unless her temper got away from her. Long, dark  
blue hair framed her face prettily and fell down her back, where she kept it tied in a loose  
pony-tail. She tended toward sun dresses and short skirts that let her fight when need be. You  
see, this young woman was the heir to her families' style of Martial Arts, the Tendo School of  
Anything Goes Martial Arts.  
  
Getting back to the rain. Yes, that rain. That drizzle that nobody wanted to be out in... Well,  
there WAS someone out in it... Not that he wanted to be, mind you. But he was. Out in the rain,  
that is... The Narrator will shut up now.  
  
A young man walked slowly through the dismal drizzle, arguing with a panda. Yes, a panda.  
Remember, this IS Nerima. Now, this being a story about Ranma, you might expect this young  
man to be Ranma. Well, you would be right, and you would be wrong. That being such a long  
and complicated story, we'll let HIM explain it to you. When he has the time. At the moment, he  
was arguing with a panda. The argument itself went something like this...  
  
"Dammit, Pops! What the hell were you thinking, engaging me to some girl without me  
knowing about it!!"   
  
The panda, now identified as the boy's father, held up a wooden sign that read, |Be respectful of  
your elders, Boy!|  
  
Said boy was tall, with wild red hair that hung in a thin pony-tail down the length of his back.  
He was currently wearing a bright red, sleeveless Chinese shirt, and a pair of black Chinese  
pants. A long black sash was wrapped around his waist. He was barefoot at the time and a pair of black leather bracers adorned his fore-arms,  
indicating that he knew how to fight. He confirmed this fact by smacking the panda a few times.  
A second. "I might respect ya if ya didn't keep making stupid mistakes like this one! Now stop  
dodging the question! What were you thinking??!"  
  
The panda retaliated by sending a few paw strikes in the young man's direction, who avoided  
them casually. |Well, my boy. Old man Tendo and I made a Pact before you were born.| flip  
|We promised each other that if one of us had a son and the other a daughter...| flip |that they  
would be engaged to marry when they reached marriage-able age.| flip |You are six-teen now  
and are eligible to fulfill the Pact.| Let's just ignore the fact that the sign seemed to have four  
sides. Thanks.  
  
"Pro'ly made it in a bar, while drunk. Oh well, I'll go along with it for now. But if I find out  
you've engaged me to someone ELSE without my consent, I'm outta here." The panda suddenly  
started sweating nervously, and the boy noticed. "Oh, great. You DID. Well, I'm gone." He  
abruptly did an about-face and began walking in the other direction. The panda panicked and  
broke a street sign out of the ground, then turned around and swatted the red-haired boy over the  
head with it. Picking the unconscious boy up, he looked around at all the staring pedestrians and  
barked angrily. He was just NOT having a good day.  
  
------{ The Tendo home }------  
  
Soun Tendo had just informed his three daughters of the engagement, with  
varying reactions, when a knock sounded from the front door. Jumping up, Soun and Nabiki  
excitedly ran for the door with Kasumi and Akane following at a more sedate pace. A moment  
later, they stopped in consternation as the first two came dashing back down the hall. The  
explanation for their panic became apparent a moment later when the panda from earlier walked  
calmly down the hallway, carrying an unmoving reddish bundle over one shoulder and a large  
hiking pack in the other.  
  
Kasumi nervously looked over her father's shoulder, "Are these your friends, father?" The Tendo  
patriarch shook his head wildly.  
  
Nabiki paused in looking over her father's other shoulder to give him a level-eyed stare, "If  
they're not your friends, then WHAT is a PANDA doing here??" Not really comprehending the  
question, Soun merely shook his head wildly a second time.  
  
It was about that time when a groan embodied from over the panda's shoulder as the young  
passenger awakened once more. Finding himself flopping over the panda's shoulder, the boy's  
temper burst and he wacked the panda in the back of the head as hard as he could, knocking it  
unconscious. He climbed off of the panda as it fell, then straightened his clothes and pony-tail,  
and took in his surroundings, mumbling to himself, "Damned panda. Serves him right..." He  
blinked as he noticed the small group staring at him, "Uh, hi..."  
  
A loud silence permeated the air until Soun finally regained some sanity, "You... wouldn't  
happen to be..."  
  
The red-haired boy suddenly smirked, "Name's Ranma Saotome, but you can call me Red."  
  
"Oh, I see! You ARE Ranma!!" Soun looked especially happy at this point as he went to give  
the boy a fatherly hug. About two seconds into the hug Ranma suddenly stiffened and slipped out of the thin man's arms. Soun backed off and tried to appraise the boy's skill.  
  
"Oooh, He's cute!" Nabiki looked a little relieved.  
  
Akane's face took on an irritated hue, "So what, Nabiki?? He's just a boy!! And what about the  
panda? What are we going to do about that??"   
  
Ranma's expression flickered toward a scowl at the "boy" remark, but he quickly covered it up  
and raised his hand, "Uh, about the panda... That's my Pop. Sort of."  
  
Nabiki raised an eyebrow, "Oh, really? I don't see the family resemblance."  
  
"Uh, well... What'd be the best way to explain it? Uh, could I get some hot water, please?" He  
shifted uncomfortably, "I guess it'd be best to show ya."   
  
Kasumi smiled sweetly, "But of course. I'll go get it. Meanwhile, please sit down. You must be  
tired from your trip."  
  
Soun spoke up, "Yes, make yourself at home."   
  
Ranma smiled, "Thanks." The small group moved to the table and Soun looked back hesitantly,  
"What about... your... father?"  
  
The red-haired boy looked back and shrugged, "Ah, leave 'im be. He'll come around sooner or  
later. Preferably later." he added under his breath.  
  
Soun looked uncertain, "If... you say so..." Ranma looked around the house, taking in the layout  
and the position of the furniture, then turned his gaze toward his hosts, studying them. Ignoring  
their uncomfortable silence, he looked over at Soun, who seemed to be studying him back.  
Transferring his gaze to Nabiki resulted in the short-haired girl primping herself and trying to  
capture his complete attention. Ignoring that, he looked over at Akane, who glared back  
spitefully. Suddenly smirking again, he continued to stare her in the eyes until her glare faltered  
and she looked away. Something tugged at the back of her mind, telling her that something  
wasn't right with those pale blue orbs. Ranma continued to study her for a moment, as he noticed  
something of interest about her.  
  
Just as he was about to say something, Akane spoke up instead, "It's not polite to stare, you  
know."  
  
Smirking yet again, he replied, "Who was staring? Me, or you? I was studying you. You were  
glaring at me. See?? No staring involved."  
  
Unable to take fault with that logic, Akane returned to glaring at him, which he ignored. "So...  
you practice martial arts?"  
  
Taken aback, she nodded, "Yeah... So??"  
  
"So how 'bout a quick match? Don't worry, I'll go easy on ya." His perpetual smirk returned.  
  
"Oh, yeah?? I could kick your sorry ass all over town!"  
  
"Wanna bet??"  
  
It was here that Nabiki jumped in. Leaning forward, she smiled at him, "Bets are my forte. How  
much?"  
  
Ranma turned to look at her, "What? Oh, sorry. Just a figure of speech."  
  
Disappointed, she sat back down. Ranma was about to say more when Kasumi returned with the  
hot water. "I'm sorry it took so long. The hot water heater is broken, so I had to warm up a  
kettle."  
  
Getting up, Ranma moved down the hallway, then returned, dragging the panda. Taking the  
kettle from Kasumi, he poured a little over the panda, which turned it into a chunky man wearing  
a dirty white gi and a bandana over his balding head. Soun gasped in recognition, "Genma??"  
The rest of the family stared.  
  
At this, the former panda groaned and sat up, holding his head, "Ungrateful boy... "  
  
Behind him, Ranma snorted, "Like I have anything to be grateful for."  
  
Rising to his feet, Genma was about to unleash the devastating "Attack of the Angry Alligator"  
(crocodile tears) on the whelp, when a voice distracted him from behind, "Genma, old friend! It  
IS you!"  
  
Turning around, he spotted Soun and his face broke out in a big grin, "Soun, old buddy! How  
have you been??" He grabbed the thin man in a bear hug (pun intended), who returned it with  
tears streaming from his eyes.  
  
Nabiki finally recovered from the shock of seeing a panda bear turn into a human being before  
her very eyes, "So you DO know these people."  
  
Soun released the heavier man and nodded, "Yes. This..." He indicated the chunky man before  
him, "Is Genma Saotome, my long-time friend and training partner."  
  
Genma nodded and pulled the red-haired boy up beside him, "And this is my son, Ranma."  
  
Ranma himself just looked down at the floor and tugged at his pony-tail nervously, "Well, sort  
of..."  
  
Soun blinked, "Exactly what do you mean by 'sort of'?"  
  
Genma cleared his throat in response, "Yes, well... It all goes back to one month ago when my  
son and I crossed over to China to further our training..."  
  
Ranma just rolled his eyes at Genma's attempt to be dramatic and sighed, "A'right, look. Have  
you ever heard of Jusenkyo?"  
  
Soun shook his head blankly. Ranma continued to explain, "The Jusenkyo springs are a  
legendary training grounds in China. Somewhere in the Bayankala range of the Quinghai  
province, I'm told. These springs are also known as The Pools of Sorrow, and for good reason,  
too. About a month ago, me and Pops, here, made a trip to see those cursed spring..."  
  
------{ Flashback Insertion Surgery In Progress }------  
  
Their guide moved in front of them and held up a sign, "Here, Honored Customers, we come to  
famous Training Ground of Cursed Springs, Jusenkyo."  
  
Ranma and his father surveyed the area as they set their packs down. Many springs littered the  
small valley, and bamboo poles grew sparsely here and there, both in and out of the springs. The  
morning heat combined with the moisture generated by the springs created a light fog over the  
whole valley, giving the viewers a creepy feeling. Genma un-shouldered his pack first, "Are you  
prepared, Ranma?" Genma was a large man, pudgy at first glance, but a second glance revealed  
that it was mostly muscle. A dirty white gi covered his large frame, and a pair of glasses were  
wrapped around his ears, pulling them close to his face. A white bandana covered his head,  
mostly concealing his baldness.  
  
Ranma who was also dressed in a white gi at the time, ignored the uneasy feeling that the  
springs gave him for the time being, and also un-shouldered his pack, "Yeah, this place ain't near  
as bad as I thought it'd be." This Ranma is a little different from the one described earlier, being  
the Ranma that we all know and love. Wild black hair was pulled into a short ponytail at the back  
of his head and cloudy blue eyes sparkled with enthusiasm.  
  
The guide was taken aback, "Oh, Honored Customers, you is strange ones, no? This place very  
dangerous, nobody use now, this training ground. More than one hundred spring here, and each  
one have own tragic legend!"  
  
Ignoring him, Genma turned toward his son, "Right. Follow me, Ranma!"  
  
Following his father, Ranma leapt up to one of the bamboo poles growing near the springs. The  
guide began to panic, "Honored Customers, what you doing? You no go there! I no finish tragic  
story yet!"  
  
Genma and son perched, one footed, on the very tops of the bamboo poles, "I'm not going to go  
easy on you, boy."  
  
Facing his father, Ranma smirked confidently, "That's just the way I like it!" As one they leaped,  
each dodging the other's blows and landing on a different pole.   
  
Below, the guide continued to panic, "Honored Customers!! Very bad you fall in spring!"  
  
Ignoring the pudgy man below, Genma jumped at his son once more, and Ranma did the same.  
This time Ranma gained the upper hand, and his father's trajectory was disrupted, sending him  
into one of the nearby springs.  
  
"What's wrong, old man? We done already?" he asked the rippling water. A moment later, the  
water gushed upward as a large, wet panda jumped from the spring and landed on a pole in front  
of the astonished boy. "W- what's THAT???!" he asked the guide, as he pointed at the panda.  
  
The guide was about to answer him when they were all distracted by a bright flash of light  
which appeared in mid-air above Ranma. The flash dropped something and disappeared. The  
shell-shocked boy had no time to react as the large object slammed into him and dropped them  
both through the boards of the spring below them. The waters became still.  
  
Concerned, Genma jumped down beside the guide and started to ask him something, but it only  
came out as growls and barks. He stopped and cleared his throat, then tried again, but the only  
sounds he could make were growling noises. Finally realizing something was wrong, he walked  
over to an untouched spring and stared in astonishment when the still water reflected the image  
of a panda.   
  
Realizing the same thing must have happened to his son, he was about to dive in after Ranma  
when the guide stopped him, "It okay, Honored Customer. Young sir fall in un-cursed spring.  
That why it boarded up."   
  
Relieved, Genma was about to ask the guide something else when he remembered his current  
predicament, that being stuck in the body of a panda. Snatching a name sign and marker from the  
guide, he wrote on the back of it, |Where do I find a cure??| He tapped the guide on his shoulder  
to get his attention, "Groww, growwrow!"  
  
The guide continued to stare at the still pool with concern, "Um, Honored Customer?... Young  
Sir not coming up..."   
  
The panda looked toward the pool questioningly, "Growwf??"  
  
The guide started for his hut, "I fear pool may be cursed, now. I go get retrieval tool." Entering  
his hut, he returned with a long pole with a blunt hook on the end. Dipping it in the pool, he  
began fishing for the missing boy, while Genma looked on with concern.   
  
The guide finally snagged something and began tugging on it. He finally pulled a body to the  
surface, and Genma burst into excited barks as he recognized his son, unchanged. However, the  
black-haired boy remained unmoving and un-breathing. Genma quickly set about trying to  
resuscitate him while the guide went back to dipping in the pool. The panda growfed  
questioningly. The guide guessed what he was asking and replied, "I think other thing was  
another boy."  
  
After fishing for nearly five minutes, the guide finally snagged something else in the pool and  
dragged it up. It was indeed another boy. He was distracted from studying the body when a  
coughing sound behind him alerted him to Ranma's awakening.  
  
------{ Eyecatch }------  
  
Genma-panda juggles some pieces of fruit, then catches them in his mouth. He takes a drink a from a nearby cup, then promptly spits it back out.  
  
------{ End Eyecatch }------  
  
Ranma coughed repeatedly, slowly ridding himself of the water in his lungs. Recovering from  
his coughing fit, he finally noticed the panda in front of him. "GYAAA!!" He skittered backward  
to get away from the beast- and promptly fell back into the pool he had just come from... The  
other two just stared in disbelief.  
  
Spluttering to the surface, he suddenly noticed that he felt... different. Fearful of what he might  
have turned into, he looked himself over, but could not immediately find anything wrong with  
his body. Carefully climbing out of the pool, (on the opposite side as the panda) he proceeded to  
look himself over more carefully. [Okay, for one thing I'm taller... ] A strand of wet hair dangled  
in front of his face. [Hey, what's with this? My hair turned red!] He ran his tongue around his  
mouth to try and get rid of the pond-water taste. [I've got fangs?? What, did I turn into a  
werewolf or something?] He looked his hands over for fur. Finding none, he noticed something  
else about his hands. [What's with my fingernails? They're harder or something... ] He flicked his  
nails a couple of times in fascination. [They're longer, too...]  
  
Across the pool, the panda held up a sign and barked to get his attention, |Ranma? Is that you,  
boy?|  
  
Looking up, the red-haired boy stared at the panda, then remembered what had happened before  
the panda had come out of the pool, "Pops, is that you??"   
  
The panda growfed happily and held up another sign, |I'm your father, boy! What happened to  
YOU??|  
  
Ranma shrugged, "I dunno, Pops. Nothin' happened the first time..."  
  
Meanwhile the guide had given up trying to resuscitate the other boy and had gone back into his  
hut. Re-emerging with a pair of kettles, he poured one on the panda. It shrank back into the  
familiar shape of Genma, who took one look at his hands and began joyfully dancing in circles.  
  
Carefully making his way around the pool, he poured the other kettle on the red-haired boy.  
Who didn't change back. The guide nearly dropped the kettle in shock. "Oh, Sirs! That never  
happen before!!"  
  
"What?? Why didn't I ch- Hey, who's that??", he asked, finally noticing the other body lying by  
the pool.   
  
"That boy who fall on Honored Customer. You both drown, but no can revive this one. So sad.  
Magic turn whatever fall in into whatever drown there last. This un-cursed spring until you  
drown. New cursed spring now form at Jusenkyo..."  
  
Ranma's face turned thoughtful, "We both drowned? Then, if this is the cursed form, I must be a  
mix of Ranma and Randy."  
  
The guide looked surprised, "Honored Customer, how you know that his name?"  
  
"I dunno. All I know is his name's Randy Donahue. I feel like I should be able to remember  
more, but..." Ranma studied the corpse with a strange sense of familiarity. Auburn hair fell to  
both sides of its face and its mouth was open, revealing its fangs. [Well, at least now I know  
where I got THOSE from...] The boy was dressed in a strange set of clothes. A purple sleeveless  
and pants, both ripped in various places. A long black sash was wrapped around its waist and  
pair of black leather bracers encased its forearms. A pair of tight black leather boots adorned its  
feet.  
  
Genma placed a hand on the boys shoulder, "You okay, boy?"  
  
Ranma looked up and turned to face the heavy-set man, "Yeah, I'm fine, Pops. It's kinda like I  
died, but I didn't. Real strange."  
  
"You sure, boy? You're taking this awfully well..."  
  
------{ Flashback Recovery Surgery In Progress }------  
  
The family sat in silence, digesting the story. Finally Nabiki spoke up, "So, to sum it all up, you  
and your father went to this Jusenkyo place and started to spar, when a flash of light dropped the  
other boy on you and knocked you both out. You both landed in an un-cursed spring, and  
drowned, cursing it so whatever fell in it next would turn into an amalgam of you and the other  
boy (Randy, you said his name was?). Your father and the guide managed to revive you, but not  
Randy, and when you woke up, you saw the panda your father had turned into, freaked out, and  
fell into the pool you'd just drowned in, thus permanently cursing yourself to look like both you  
and this other boy."  
  
Ranma nodded, "That's about right. 'Cept, if you wanna get technical, the person I am now is  
neither Ranma OR Randy, since Pops tells me my personality changed. I kinda decided I'm both,  
thus the nickname 'Red'." He suddenly blinked, "Oh, yeah! I told you about the fangs and the  
fingernails, right?"  
  
The rest of the family nodded collectively, so Ranma continued, "When we buried the body, we  
found out I'd 'inherited' something else from him..." He pulled back the hair at the side of his  
head away from his ears, revealing the fact that they tapered to a point at the top. "The other guy  
had bigger and longer ears, but they were still pointed, like mine."  
  
It was at this point Akane finally figured out what was wrong with his eyes, "That's it! Your  
eyes, they're slitted, like a cat's!!"  
  
The family gathered around him to get a good look as his eyes widened in understanding, "So  
that's it! I was wondering why I could see in the dark better after that." He then shrugged and  
turned toward Akane, "Oh, well. Just another weird thing in my life. So, when do we have our  
match?"  
  
The youngest Tendo looked at him blankly for a moment until she remembered that he had  
challenged her to a sparring match before he started his story, "What, right now?? Alright, I  
suppose..." She rose from the table and headed toward the dojo, the red-haired boy trailing  
behind.  
  
Soun looked after them as they left, tears streaming from his eyes, "Oh they're getting along  
already! It's the perfect match! Right, Saotome-kun?" However, the large man had also risen  
from the table and was preparing to follow the pair.  
  
"Tendo-kun, there's something I think you should see..." he said seriously. "The boy's fighting  
style also changed when he fell in that pool. Even someone who doesn't know his original style  
will know the difference. I think you should see for yourself." Puzzled, the Tendo patriarch rose  
to follow his friend, his other two daughters trailing behind in mild curiosity.  
  
------{ Out in the dojo }------  
  
Ranma and Akane faced off. Akane glared at the BOY in front of her that dared  
to challenge HER. The best martial artist in Nerima! "Get ready, because I'm NOT going to hold  
back!"  
  
Ranma merely smirked and sank down a little, "Heh. Wouldn't have it any other way!"  
  
Akane shifted into her own stance and regarded the red-haired boy across from her. [Wha...  
What's with his stance?? I've never seen that one before.] Ranma's knees were bent and he  
balanced on the balls of his bare feet, toes spread for balance. One foot was slightly in front of  
the other, but other than that, there appeared to be no stance at all. Even with his hands in his  
pockets, he seemed to project the feeling of a cat, ready to pounce. Akane shook her head to clear  
it, shaking off the frightened feeling that had washed over her for a moment. [It doesn't matter.  
I'm the best in Nerima."  
  
Dashing forward, she lashed with a forward punch. Ranma merely hopped over it... and hit her  
in the face with a standing jump-kick. He landed with a disappointed look on his face, "Hey, I  
thought you weren't gonna hold back? Come'on, take me seriously, here."  
  
Stumbling back from the light kick, Akane glared at him and moved forward again, this time  
with a punch-punch-kick combo. In response, the pony-tailed boy moved to the side of her  
punches and bent over backward to avoid her kick, then retaliated with a quick upward kick from  
below, hitting her lightly in the stomach. He straightened up from his bent over position, still on  
one foot. His hands were still in his pockets.  
  
Seeming to forget that it was only a sparring match, Akane rushed forward and launched a  
full-out assault on the confidently smirking boy before her. Annoyingly, he shifted around every  
single one of her strikes, sometimes moving to the side, sometimes moving up or down, but  
always avoiding her at the last second. Confident that she had him on the defensive, she  
continued to miss him by mere inches, ignoring the fact that he had yet to take his hands out of  
his pockets.   
  
As she consistently failed to even touch the boy, her frustration started to swell. Finally she  
snapped, a red haze settling over her vision. She screamed a battle cry as an angry red aura  
bloomed into existence around her body.  
  
Ranma straightened from his slouched position and finally took his hands out of his pockets,  
watching her with interest. [Hmmm... I was right! She does have potential. Lots of it, in fact.] He  
released his own aura, which was, at the moment, a pale blue, matching his eyes. He had yet to  
take a stance.  
  
Akane jumped forward, even faster than before, and began to attack the glowing boy with  
unmatched fury. Punches that blurred and kicks that whistled STILL missed the smirking boy,  
who continued to dance around her attacks. This continued for nearly five minutes until Ranma  
stopped watching her movements and retaliated. He ducked back from one last punch, and...  
shifted. A moment later, Akane dropped to the floor, unconscious.  
  
Soun, who had watched the fight with growing concern, rounded on Ranma, his face swelling  
into the Demon-head Technique, "RRRAAAANNMMMMAAAAA!!! How dare you hurt my  
little girl!!!!"  
  
Ranma suddenly returned the demon-head glare with a glare of his own, "Ah, so YOU'RE the  
one who's been holding back this great fighter. Or she would have been, if you hadn't been so  
soft with her training! As a great martial artist yourself, and as a father, it's YOUR duty to make  
sure every fighter reaches their full potential, including your daughter!"  
  
Unexpectedly, Soun deflated and began sobbing, "I- I just wanted what was best for my little  
girl!"  
  
Ranma's face softened and he placed a hand on the tearful man's shoulder, "Yeah, well your  
'little girl' also has the potential to be a great fighter. It'd be a shame to let that potential go to  
waste." Off to the side, Genma nodded wisely.  
  
Soun nodded, still sobbing, "You're right, but after my beloved wife died, I just haven't had the  
heart to train seriously." Kasumi and Nabiki looked on in sympathy.  
  
Ranma nodded, understanding, "Well, I can't say I understand the loss of a loved one, but I don't  
think anyone should let themselves waste away like this. I can tell you used to be a great martial  
artist in your own right, and I think with a little training you could be again. You just need to pull  
your self together."  
  
Genma stepped forward and put his hand on Soun's other shoulder, "The boy is right,  
Tendo-kun. Pull yourself together. We can train together, just like in the old days." Inwardly, he  
wondered just where Ranma had gotten THAT little bit of wisdom. It certainly hadn't been from  
him.  
  
Kasumi and Nabiki were surprised when their father didn't immediately lash out at the two for  
daring to tell him to forget his wife, but instead continued sob, "I- I don't know... I'll think about  
it." Ranma nodded and released his shoulder, satisfied.  
  
Genma squeezed the thin man's shoulder and let go, nodding, "That's all we ask, Tendo-kun.  
That's all we ask. Now, how about finishing those introductions the boy interrupted."  
  
Taking a moment to come to himself, Soun cleared his throat, "Yes, well... Ranma, my boy, my  
name is Soun Tendo, and these are my three daughters. Kasumi, she's 19, Nabiki, she's 17, and  
Akane- Akane, my baby!! Someone get an ice pack!" Kasumi immediately headed for the  
kitchen.  
  
Ranma smirked and shook his head, "She's fine, Tendo-san. She'll be a little sore when she  
wakes up, but most of it was her own fault. Her body's just not used to moving that fast, that's all.  
I only hit her hard enough to bruise once, and that was when I knocked her out."  
  
Akane groaned as she came to and Ranma gestured in her direction, "See?" He walked over to  
the teary-eyed girl and crouched next to her, "Hey, you okay?"  
  
She abruptly tried to shove him away, then groaned as her muscles protested, "Go away."  
  
He didn't move, "Hey, hey. What's wrong?"   
  
Akane just squeezed the tears out of her eyes and turned away from him, "Nothing a BOY like  
you would understand. Go. Away."   
  
The pony-tailed boy merely shifted from a crouch to a kneel, "I don't get it. Why would the fact  
that I'm a guy bother you?" The dark-haired girl didn't answer, so he sighed and sat down in a  
cross-legged position, "Okay, fine. I ain't movin' 'til you tell me what's the matter." She  
involuntarily stared at him in surprise, then quickly looked away again.   
  
The other members of the family suddenly looked at Ranma in a new light, including Kasumi,  
who had returned with the requested ice-pack. She walked over to the pair and set it on Akane's  
forehead. Silence reigned for several minutes as Kasumi knelt next to them and stroked Akane's  
hair, until Akane finally mustered the courage to ask, "...Why?"  
  
Ranma thought for a moment, then shrugged, "I guess it partly has to do with... Well, it seems as  
if this thing you got against boys is connected to how angry you got when you fought me. You  
lost control of your anger, and that's never a good thing for a martial artist to do... That, and I just  
can't stand seein' a girl cry." He tugged his pony-tail in embarrassment.  
  
"Look, Saotome-kun! They're bonding already! Looks like your boy has already chosen who to  
marry!" Three guesses who that was, and the first two don't count.  
  
Ranma's head snapped up, "Marry??"  
  
Soun nodded happily, "Yes. I was going to give you the pick of my girls to wed, but it appears  
you have already chosen!"  
  
The red-haired boy looked a little disgruntled, "Darn, I was hoping you'd forget about that." He  
shrugged, "Oh, well. I just thought you'd like to know, that agreement you made with Pops is  
kinda void." The girls looked at him sharply.  
  
That wiped the smile off of Soun's face real quick, "What do you mean by that???"  
  
"Well, see, on the way here I found out Pops engaged me to somebody ELSE, too..."  
  
Soun rounded on Genma this time, "Saotome-kun, what is the meaning of this???!"  
  
"I- I- uh... well..." Genma stuttered for a moment, then regained his composure, "Oh, the boy's  
just being rebellious, that's all. Yeah. Besides, even if I had done that, our agreement takes  
precedence, since we made it before they were ever born! Right, Tendo-kun?"  
  
The mustached man immediately calmed down, "Of course! You're right Saotome-kun! It does  
take precedence, doesn't it?"  
  
"Eh-heh... Right..."  
  
smack The sound drew their attention to Ranma, who was still sitting by Akane and had just  
smacked his face in frustration. "Jeeze, I hope the stupidity around here isn't contagious." He  
unfolded himself and got to his feet, "A'right. Let's get one thing straight. I ain't marryin' no-one,  
no-how. The only reason I'm gonna stay here in the first place, is 'cause I wanna see Akane here  
reach her full potential. So if you want me ta stay here, you better start trainin' her seriously."  
  
Genma rose to his full height, which was actually a little shorter than his son, "Now see here,  
boy! This engagement is a matter of honor. You will marry a Tendo and be happy about it,  
hear?"  
  
"Honor, schmonour. You wouldn't know honor if it came up an' BIT you on the BUTT, old  
man!"  
  
The large man's expression turned from sternness to sadness in the blink of an eye. He put an  
arm over his face and began to shed crocodile tears, "Why, oh why??? What did I ever do to get  
such a disrespectful boy???"  
  
Ranma's face turned dark, "Stuff it, old man."  
  
"Oh, the shame!! The humiliation!!!"  
  
"I... said... STUFF IT!!!!" The red-haired boy's aura burst into existence around him, a dark  
purple this time, just before he blurred forward and stiff-armed the unsuspecting man, sending  
him through the wall of the dojo and into the koi pond in the yard. He stayed in the strike  
position for a moment before his aura blinked out and he took a deep breath to get his anger  
under wraps.  
  
Smiling weakly, he turned around and bowed to the startled family, "Sorry 'bout that." He  
looked seriously at Akane, "Even MY temper can get away from me at times. The old man's  
Pro'ly just gonna have a bruise in the morning, but if that was a normal person, they would have  
been seriously injured. Keep that in mind when YOUR temper gets away from you."  
  
Akane nodded slowly as she took in the information, then painstakingly got to her feet, muscles  
protesting every step of the way. Kasumi clucked in concern, "Oh dear. You had better go take a  
bath, Akane."  
  
Ranma nodded in agreement, "She's right. A nice hot soak 'll do wonders for those sore muscles.  
Ya need some help gettin' there?" Akane shook her head stubbornly, to which Ranma smirked  
and shook his head in amusement, "Yeah, you're tough. You can make it."  
  
Kasumi escorted the younger girl out of the dojo and into the house, leaving Ranma alone with  
Soun and Nabiki. The short-haired girl took this opportunity to latch onto his arm, and mold  
herself to his side. Ranma blushed and tried to subtly scoot away from the clinging girl.  
Unfortunately, this only had the effect of making her squeeze harder.  
  
"So, Ranma-kun. What's your choice?", she purred throatily.  
  
gulp "Uh, Choice?", he squeaked, then cleared his throat, "Choice?"  
  
"Yes... I don't know about you, but I'M willing to give this engagement thing a try, especially  
with someone as -handsome- and -fit- as you..." She began tracing circles on his chest, eliciting  
nervous giggles from the beet red boy.  
  
"Eh-heh-heh... Fit? I'm fit. Yeah. Very fit. Uh, fit. Very.", he continued to babble, nearly ready  
make a break for it.  
  
"Yeah... So how about I show you my -bedroom-..." With a jerk, a dribble of blood trickled from  
his nose and he slumped to the floor in a dead faint, causing the short-haired girl burst into  
giggles.  
  
Soun frowned at his daughter in disapproval, "Now, Nabiki. That wasn't very nice."  
  
Still giggling, she managed to reply, "Oh, daddy. You know I wasn't serious. I was just having a  
bit of fun, that's all."  
  
He continued to frown, "Still..."  
  
She finally straightened, regaining her breath, "It's okay, daddy. If he doesn't accept the  
engagement, I'm pretty sure I can at least get a boyfriend out of the deal. After all, he did say he  
was going to stay a while..."  
  
The mustached man brightened at that, "You're right, Nabiki. Good luck with him!"  
  
------{ Eyecatch }------  
  
Ranma juggles a several balls, a small black piglet, and a white-and-lavender cat, then uppercuts a descending Genma-panda under the jaw, knocking it out.   
  
------{ End Episode 01 }------  
  
Author's Notes: And there it is... I hope I don't get flamed TOO badly for this one. As you can  
see, the new Ranma still has bits of the old Ranma hanging around, so he won't be TOO  
different. I hope. The BIG differences are mostly that he is a lot more devoted to Martial Arts,  
and he doesn't take a whole lot of crap. From anyone. (That's not to say he takes NO crap, just  
not much.) His views toward honor are also a little looser.  
  
If you're wondering where the Chaos is, it has to do with the other guy that Ranma merged with.  
If you want details, either wait until the next chapter or e-mail me at: {ReD2in@hotmail.com}.  
I'll warn you again, though. I update very slowly. (Maybe once every two months.)  
  
Poll time!!! Just kidding. Although there are a couple things I want to know, so if you review this  
thing, let me know. First off, would you rather I continue Chaos 1/2, or Finishing Moves first?  
Second, where do you think Chaos 1/2 should go from here? Finishing Moves is more-or-less pure  
Ranma, and that makes it somewhat limited (to me,anyway), whereas Chaos 1/2 is an A/U and could go pretty much anywhere  
from here. I've got ideas, but I want to hear YOUR input.  
  
Anyway, Read 'n Review!! Constructive Criticism will be welcomed, Flames will be given to  
the neighbor's Rotweilers* (spelled?) to chew on.  
  
Hello??  
  
Anyone out there??  
  
Anybody???  
  
sigh 


	2. Episode 02: School Is No Place For Horsi...

Intro: Wow! I'm surprised! I thought this one sucked, but I got more reviews for the ONE chapter of Chaos 1/2 that I posted than I did for the TWO chapters of Finishing Moves! So, thanks for the reviews, people! You guys better pray I can keep it up! Anway, here it is...  
  
Disclaimer: It's MINE!! MINE, I tell you!! Ka-klick (For those who don't know, that's the sound of a gun being cocked.) Ah-heh-heh.... Or not.  
  
Warnings: Currently unedited. (Don't need the spellchecker for the most part.) Mild language.  
  
------------{ Chaos 1/2 }------------  
  
------{ Episode 2: School Is No Place For Horsing Around... }------  
  
Akane Tendo got up the next morning and grimaced. Her muscles were still sore from yeserday's "sparring match". Even so, she slipped out of her pajamas and into her jogging clothes. It was a habit of hers, jogging. It helped to clear her mind for the day and psyched her up for the up-coming trials that she would most likely encounter at school. She carefully slipped out the door, stopping to say good morning to her elder sister, Kasumi, who was preparing breakfast.   
  
Stepping out of the gate, she began her morning jog, her thoughts on the two guests that had arrived yesterday. The panda that turned out to be her father's friend had definitely been strange, but not as strange as the boy it had carried with it. Ranma was a mystery to her. At first glance, he seemed to be an egotistical jerk just like the rest of them. That idea had firmed in her head when he challenged her to a sparring match. Then he had beaten her. EASILY!! And he hadn't gloated. That was where that idea fell to pieces. In fact, he had plopped himself down next to her aching body and asked what was wrong. She wouldn't have been able to do a thing if he had decided to do anything to her, but he never made a move to touch her. She just couldn't figure it out. All the boys that she had ever met were at least a little perverted. This one had had her helpless... and done nothing! Granted, her family had been watching, but she doubted her father would have done anything, seeing as how he had tried to engage her to him.  
  
Returning to Tendo compound, Akane was startled out of her musings when a pair of shouts erupted from the yard. Moving through the gate, she was treated to the sight of Ranma and his father beginning their morning sparring match in the yard. It started out slowly enough, so she grabbed a towel waiting for her off of the porch, and sat down to watch.  
  
"Remember, boy. Today is a skill exercise." Ranma merely nodded in response. Both of them were wearing gis, and Ranma was wearing his bracers again. Or was it still? As one, they leapt at each other, exchanging and blocking blows at the same time. Akane noticed that Ranma didn't seem to be as fast today as he had been yesterday when he had beaten her. Father and son continued to fight, and smacking sounds filled the air as most of Ranma's swings slammed into his father's open palms, stopping them cold. Low whistles were heard as Genma's return strikes missed the younger fighter by millimeters.   
  
Suddenly Ranma jumped back and took a different stance than the one he had been using. Akane looked confused for a moment until she realized that it was the same one he had used yesterday in the dojo. Balanced on the balls of his feet with knees bent. This time his hands were out in front of him, one in front of the other and both of them palm down. Instead of closed fists, his hands were flat and the fingers of each hand were tucked in, giving off the look of some sort of paw.  
  
Genma paused for a moment also, "Oh ho. Decided to use your new style, eh, boy??" Ranma's only reply was the confident smirk he sent in Genma's direction.   
  
Just then Kasumi called from inside, "Saotome-san, Ranma-kun! Breakfast is ready!"  
  
Genma smiled in her direction, "Thank you, Kasumi-chan! We'll be right in!" Facing Ranma again, he leapt into the air to attack. The red-haired boy followed his lead, and they met in mid-air over the koi pond. Akane stared at their hang-time as they hung over the pond, exchanging blows for a moment. Finally Genma managed to sneak a kick through Ranma's defenses and sent him plummeting into the pond. Or he would have if Ranma hadn't twisted impossibly at the last second and altered his trajectory, landing at the edge of the koi pond. Bouncing back up into the air, he met the decending Genma and kicked the surprised man into the water below. After the giant splash subsided, a soggy Genma-panda crawled out of the pond and began growfing at the pony-tailed boy angrily.  
  
Ranma cupped a hand to his ear, smirking happily, "What's that, Pops? You're getting sloppy? Well, I guess I'll have to whip you back into shape, then." Grinning, he sauntered into the house and sat down at the table.  
  
"Oh my, I suppose Saotome-san will need something different for breakfast." Kasumi whipped out a large platter of bamboo shoots from underneath the table. We'll just ignore the fact that there hadn't been anything under the table either.  
  
------{ After breakfast }------  
  
"A'right. What's this about school?" Ranma scowled at his father, once again dressed in his Chinese clothes, complete with sash and bracers.  
  
Genma drew himself up in return, "Well, we ARE going to be staying a while."  
  
"Yeah, right. You just don't want me around to bug ya about training all day long."  
  
Genma winced, "Uh, no. It's just that, as the heir to The Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts, it falls upon you to educate yourself to the fullest extent so as to be able to properly take over the dojo when you marry one of Tendo's girls."  
  
Ranma leveled a stare at him, "Uh huh. You just don't want me to bug ya."  
  
"Well, that too."  
  
"And you're STILL not listening to me. I will NEVER marry a Tendo girl without their willing consent!"  
  
Nabiki, who had just come downstairs, overheard this last part, "I don't know about the others, Ranma-kun, but I'M certainly willing to give this thing a try." The red-haired boy's face suddenly matched his hair as he remembered her saying almost the exact same thing last night in the dojo.  
  
"You're NOT helping my case, Nabiki."  
  
The short-haired girl blithely ignored him, "You'd better hurry up and get ready if you're going to walk me to school. I don't have all day, you know."  
  
Ranma rolled his eyes, "Geh. Fine. I'll go to school. But I don't have a school-bag." Genma popped up in front of him, school-bag in hand. He angrily swiped the bag from his father, then snap-kicked him into the koi pond, "That's for not listening to me again!" He adjusted his bracers and turned toward Nabiki, "Well, let's go."  
  
She gave him a look, then pointed at his feet, which were still bare, "You might want to get some shoes on, first."  
  
He looked down, then shrugged, "Nah. Don't need 'em anyway. Shoes restrict my toes when I fight." She continued to look at him strangely until Akane breezed past with her school-bag.  
  
"Hey, you guys. You're going to be late if you don't hurry up."  
  
Nabiki finally shrugged, "Whatever. Come on, then."  
  
------{ The walk to school }------  
  
"What are you doing on the fence?"  
  
"Balance practice."  
  
"I see. How about you come down here, and we can cuddle a little."  
  
"...... I happen to like it up HERE, thank you very much."  
  
"What? You don't- sniffle LIKE me??"  
  
" No, no. You're a nice person... when you don't want to, uh, cuddle."  
  
"Oh...... You... want me to lay off, then?"  
  
"Thanks. Uh, no offense."  
  
------{ The School-yard }------  
  
Ranma looked around the school-yard and saw most of the male half of the student body littered across the area. Further inspection revealed Akane, who was holding a rose, and a tall boy dressed in kendo garb that had just stepped out from behind a tree, who was speaking a verse of poetry to the less-than-enthusiastic girl.  
  
He looked at Nabiki questioningly, but she waved it off, "Oh, don't worry about it. This happens every morning."  
  
"EVERY morning??"  
  
"Yeah. You might want to hurry up. We're almost late as it is."  
  
Indecision flickered across Ranma's face for a moment, then cleared, "Nah, you go on ahead. I wanna see this." After looking at him for a moment, Nabiki nodded and moved into the school-building, avoiding the scattered bodies of the unconscious boys. The pony-tailed boy was about to hop up onto the school wall when Akane tried to step around the other boy.  
  
"Oh, Kuno. Excuse me."  
  
Kuno raised a bokken to block her path, "Oh, though she be but little, she be fierce. Akane Tendo, wilt thou spar with me?"  
  
A cross look set on her face as she reluctantly got into a stance. It was at this point Ranma finally stepped forward, "I don't know about you, but it appears to me as if the lady doesn't WANT to 'spar'."  
  
"I can handle it Ranma."  
  
The other boy swung his bokken to point at Ranma, "And who might YOU be, insolent whelp??" Thunder rumbled ominously in the distance.  
  
"Name's R-"  
  
"WAIT! Is it not custom to give one's OWN name -first-?? Fine, then. Mine I shall give. I am the un-defeated Captain of this school's Kendo club. The rising new star of the high-school fencing world. The sound of my voice strikes fear in the hearts of my enemies. My peers call me the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High. Tatewaki Kuno, age seventeen." A flash of lightning lit the dark sky behind him as his voice echoed dramaticly across the empty school yard. A pair of school-girls watching from a window looked at each other.  
  
" 'Blue Thunder'?? Have YOU heard that before?"  
  
"Beats me. Last -I- heard, he was calling himself 'Shooting Star'."  
  
Unimpressed, Ranma merely cleared his throat, "Ahem. If I'm not mistaken, it is ALSO custom to let people finish their sentences. And it's rude to point. AS I was saying, my name is Ranma Saotome of the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts. I'm currently staying at the Tendo Dojo."  
  
"I SAID, I can handle it, Ranma!"  
  
"Staying with the TENDO'S?? Under the SAME roof... as AKANE??!!" Enraged, Kuno rushed forward and swiped at the red-haired boy with a downward strike. Ranma avoided it by back-flipping away, twisting a couple of times before he landed next to Akane.  
  
"You wanna challenge ME?? A'right. Let's dance." He smirked.  
  
------{ Eyecatch }------  
  
Genma-panda juggles some pieces of fruit, then snatches them out of the air with his mouth. He chokes on the last piece.  
  
------{End Eyecatch }------  
  
Akane had finally had enough, "RANMA!! Stop interfering with MY fight!!"  
  
He glanced in her direction, "What? You're still here? Aren't you supposed to be in class by now?"  
  
She suddenly looked horrified, "Oh no!! I'm going to be late!! This is all your fault, Ranma!" Her eyes narrowed in anger.  
  
"A fool thou must be, to ignore your opponent in the midst of combat! Very well, I shall punish you for your inattention!" Kuno swung his bokken at Ranma again, but missed as the pony-tailed boy leaned to the side and continued to argue with Akane.  
  
"Excuse me, but he challenged ME, too. Since you didn't really wanna fight 'im in the first place, I figured I'd let ya get to class. Whoop, gotta go."  
  
Kuno slashed downward and smashed a V in the concrete wall, but missed Ranma, who jumped up and bounced off of the trunk of a nearby tree. Bouncing higher into the air, the red-haired boy avoided a side-slash from Kuno which sliced the tree trunk completely in half. Descending on the bokken-wielding boy, he was forced to twist impossibly in mid-air to avoid an upward slash from Kuno. The twist also altered Ranma's trajectory, which now took him over Kuno's head and behind him, where he kicked the angry boy in the small of the back, then flipped upright just before he hit the ground, "You use ki. That's good."  
  
Kuno fairly shook with rage, "Thou art fleet of foot, knave. However, the vengeance of heaven is slow, but sure. I, Tatewaki Kuno, shall bring you to justice."  
  
"Maybe eventually, Kuno. Right now, you couldn't touch me if your life depended on it. You better train some more if you want to 'bring me to justice'."  
  
Behind him, Akane fumed, "Hey!! Stop ignoring me!!" That said, she threw her school-bag at the red-haired boy, who back-flipped out of the way, at the same time avoiding another swipe from a livid Kuno. Having missed Ranma, the school-bag was sliced in half as the swipe meant for Ranma hit it instead.  
  
Landing from his flip, Ranma turned to glare at the fuming girl, "You didn't want to fight, so get to class, already!!" Still irritated, he turned back to Kuno, "A'right, Kuno. One more chance."  
  
Filled with rage, Kuno raised his bokken once more, and slashed diagnally at Ranma, who for once, didn't dodge. He knocked the bokken aside with his bracers, then blurred forward with a burst of ki and stiff-armed the surprised boy in the chest. The stunned boy flew backward, then hit the wall, cracking it, before sliding down to the ground, unconscious. The watching crowd of students gasped in surprised at seeing the school's best fighter go down so quickly.  
  
The impending rain chose that particular time to break loose, drenching occupants of the otherwise empty schoolyard. Ranma shook his head and sighed, then moved to pick up the unconscious Kuno, "Well, he was a -little- better than I gave him credit for... Akane, you better get to class. I'm gonna take this guy to the nurse's office." Akane just stood there and stared at the space where Ranma had stiff-armed Kuno.  
  
------{ In the nurse's office }------  
  
Kuno came to with a groan. He stiffly sat up and looked around, eventually spotting the red-haired boy sitting next to the cot he was laying on, "You!! Thou art the vile miscreant who would assume to champion the fierce tigress, Akane Tendo!"   
  
Ranma held up a hand, "I would have words with you, User of Sword." Kuno blinked, startled. "The first order of things would be to congratulate you for a fight well fought." He got up out of his chair and bowed to the astonished swordsman, "Good fight." Kuno stared at him, speechless, so he sat back down and continued, "The second order of things would be to correct the misunderstanding that sparked our battle to begin with. You challenged me for what reason?"  
  
Kuno stared at him uncomprehendingly for a moment until he regained control of his vocal chords again, "So, the peasant has some familiarity with proper patterns of speech. Mayhap you have some form of intelligence to be reckoned with. Very well, I shall converse with you. Thou hast asked the reason for my challenge. Being a new student amongst these hallowed halls, you must not know of the decree I made known at the beginning of the last semester."  
  
------{ Another Painful Flashback }------  
  
Kuno slammed a single piece of paper down on the podium. Above him, a banner read, |Furinkan High-School Speech Contest|. He ignroed the paper and began his 'speech', "The vengeance of heaven is slow, but sure! If you wish to take Akane out, you must defeat her in combat! I, Tatewaki Kuno, will permit no other terms." He leaned forward and glared at the rest of the student body, "Now, am I making myself PERFECTLY CLEAR?!"  
  
------{ End Painful Flashback }------  
  
Ranma stared at Kuno in disbelief. After a moment, he covered it up and nodded in comprehension, "I see."  
  
"Being that you have made your residence at the Tendo's, thou will eventually find thyself challenged by the fierce tigress, Akane." He paused as Ranma held up a hand, "What wouldst thou ask of me?"  
  
"Actually, Akane has already fought me and lost. She has a lot of potential, though."  
  
"What?!?! You have already fought with my beautiful Akane Tendo?!" Kuno sat bolt upright. "And you WON?!?!"  
  
"Yes."  
  
Kuno's fist wrapped around an imaginary bokken, "Why, you... You fiend!! You DARE to assault the beauteous Akane Tendo?!?! You scoundrel!! Have you no honor in you at all?!?!"  
  
Ranma's calm face took on a tense look, "On the contrary. I am a Martial Artist, and as such, Honor is my life. Akane is also a Martial Artist. Our battle was a fair fight between warriors. She fought well." He stood and moved toward the door, "Just as I fought you, I fight everyone. No matter the challenger, I fight fairly. I suggest you do the same. I now bid you some time to think on these things..." He pulled the door open, "Oh, and a word of advice, Kuno. 'A Facade lost may gain Allies instead.' " With that, he closed the door and left. Kuno sat back in the cot, pondering the words of the wayward warrior.  
  
------{ In the classroom }------  
  
The teacher gestured to Ranma, who stood in front of the chalk-board, "It seems we have a new student here at Furinkan High. His name is Ranma Saotome, and he's just returned from a trip to China. So let's all give him a warm 'Nihao' welcome. However, that doesn't excuse the fact that he and Akane Tendo were late, so go stand in the hall." Ranma shook his head in disbelief and headed for the buckets.  
  
------{ Out in the hall }------  
  
"After all THAT, you STILL didn't get to class on time?!" Ranma shook his head again.  
  
Akane glared at him, "Well, it was all YOUR fault anyway!"  
  
Ranma ignored her, "Jeeze. All that wasted effort, an' not even a word of thanks." He shrugged, "Oh well."  
  
"What?! You expect me to THANK you for making me LATE?!"  
  
He shook his head, "No, I expect you to thank me for trying to help you out."  
  
"Yeah?! Well, I DON'T need your help! I can fight my own fights!!"  
  
"I'm not talking about the fight, Akane. I was trying to let you get to class on time. Yet you just stood there and yelled at me. You need to get that temper of yours under control soon, or you'll never be able to attain the peace of heart necessary to reach your full potential. I've seen a lot of Martial Artists out there who have no peace of heart, and they're limited by their anger, or depression, or whatever. The point is, if you want to be the best you can be, you need to curb that anger. If you can do that, I look forward to the day when I can see you become all you want to be."  
  
Akane stared at him, her anger draining away, "You... you..." She finally gave up and stared at the opposite wall, thinking about Ranma's speech.  
  
------{ In a different classroom }------  
  
"WHAT?!?! Engaged?! To a Tendo?!"  
  
"Uh-huh. His daddy and my daddy decided. I-"  
  
"Grrrraaahh!!!"  
  
thwap "Kuno! Go stand in the hall!"  
  
"... Yessir."  
  
------{ Back in the hall }------  
  
"So.... Kuno tells me he put a defeat-to-date rule on you?"  
  
Akane stared at him, "You actually TALKED... to KUNO?!"  
  
Ranma shrugged, "Well, yeah. He's not that bad, once you get past the I'm-so-superior-and-sophisticated facade he puts up."  
  
Akane stared at him again, disbelief obvious, "Yeah, right."  
  
"Hey, I'm not kidding! Kinda feel sorry for 'im, really. 'Course, it didn't turn out THAT great, but yeah. I talked to 'im."  
  
Akane blinked as she remembered something, "Hey, didn't you block that swing of his with your bracers?"  
  
"Yeah, why?"  
  
"Well... Are you okay? I mean, his bokken does more damage than a REAL sword sometimes."  
  
"Oh. Well, you should know something about these bracers. They used to belong to Randy, the other guy that drowned in that spring. And I don't know where he got 'em, but they're really tough. I didn't even need to strengthen 'em with ki to block that. Oh, and thanks."  
  
Akane blinked, "For what?"  
  
"For your concern. Yeah, I know, you hate my guts. Don't worry about it. It's perfectly okay to show concern for another human being." Ranma smirked, showing off his fangs.  
  
Akane glared at him before looking away, "Yeah, well... I'm not so sure you're even -human- anymore..."  
  
"What do y-" He cut himself off and his eyes snapped to the end of the hall where Kuno had just screeched to a halt.  
  
"Never!! I shall NEVER accept this travesty, this wrongdoing!!"  
  
Akane looked at them and muttered, " 'Didn't go that great' indeed."  
  
Ranma looked at the kendoist blankly, "WHAT are you TALKING about, Kuno?"  
  
Kuno took a deep breath to calm himself, "I MEAN... your -engagement- to Akane Tendo."  
  
A crowd of students suddenly crammed into the classroom window, all talking at once, "What?"/"Wow, way to go Akane!"/"Good for you, Akane!"/"So who's the lucky guy?"  
  
Akane immediately began protesting while Ranma looked on with a slightly bored expression on his face. He finally cleared his throat, "Ahem. Actually, I believe NABIKI has volunteered for that position."  
  
"Oh." The crowd visibly wilted and went back to their classes.  
  
Kuno, on the other hand, "You lie!! For what man in his right mind would NOT choose the beauteous Akane, this Venus of women?!"  
  
The red-haired boy contemplated this for a second, then smirked, "Hmmmm... I guess that means I'm not in my right mind, then. Ne?"  
  
Taken aback, Kuno stared at him for a moment. Ranma stared back at him, still smirking. Finally Kuno nodded, "Indeed. For one such as yourself shows no fear in the face of my wrath. Thou must be a great fool to defy your betters." On the other side of the wall, the listening student body burst into laughter.  
  
A scowl worked it's way onto Ranma's face before he covered it up with a smirk, "My betters, eh? I will prove to you exactly who is the better here. I challenge you to a duel!"  
  
"Very well, we shall fight after-"  
  
"-We fight here and now!" Ranma's foot slammed into the surprised kendoist's face, "When I challenge someone, or they challenge me, I expect them to fight me IMMEDIATELY!!" Kuno grasped his face and stumbled backward.  
  
Ranma flipped over him in the low school hallway, planting a foot in the back of his head on the way over, "Still, this ain't exactly a good place to fight. Better follow me!" Turning, he sprinted down the hallway, Kuno close behind. Akane stared after them as the entire classroom poured out of the door in anticipation of another fight. Finally she slammed her buckets down and took off after them.  
  
The janitor looked at the mess left behind and cupped a hand to his mouth, "Hey! Run QUIETLY in the halls!"  
  
After running down a few hallways, Ranma finally spotted an open window, "Oh, look! A shortcut!" With that he spun and jumped backwards out the window, with Kuno following shortly there-after.  
  
The panting student body finally caught up and looked out the window, "Hey! Isn't this the third floor?"  
  
"Good thing there's a pool down there."  
  
Outside, Ranma finally noticed the swimming pool, and a wide grin spread across his face, "Hey, look! A training opportunity!! Whooo!!!"  
  
SMACK / SMACK  
  
Up above, half of the student body winced. The other half stared in disbelief.  
  
"Ooooo... That HAD to hurt!"  
  
"Did he just do... a BELLYFLOP?!?!"  
  
Down below, two bodies floated to the surface of the pool.  
  
------{ Eyecatch }------  
  
Ranma juggles several balls, a small black piglet, a white-and-lavender cat, then snap-kicks a descending Genma-panda under the jaw, knocking it out.  
  
------{ End Episode 02 }------  
  
Author's Notes: Ah, yes. Our first glimpse of "Ranma the Nut". Yes, he will be making more appearances, so be sure to pay attention! Yeah, and just because you thought Akane acted a little nicer last time doesn't mean that her and Ranma won't have their fair share of fights. By the way, do you guys know how freakin' HARD it is to write lines for KUNO?!?! Okay, does anyone know where I'm going with this story? No? Good.  
  
I think I'm going to find something else to signify sounds. Fanfiction.net doesn't translate that freakin' ( ) sign right. It comes out looking like that gibberish between the parenthesis to the left.  
  
If anybody's wondering why Red Ranma has a pony-tail instead of a pig-tail, it's because he never ate the dragon's whisker. A pony-tail was the style he kept it in before he ate the dragon's whisker. (Of course, it is a little longer than canon Ranma's. It almost reaches down to his waist.) Oh, yeah. And Red Ranma is THIS universe's Ranma, as opposed to CANON Ranma. Just to clear it up.  
  
Okay, since it seems my on-going reviews for Finishing Moves have dwindled down to practically nil, I will continue to update Chaos 1/2 a little faster. Depending on how many reviews I get, I might or might not continue Finishing Moves past the first arc of the storyline. That arc only has one more chapter to go, so if you read it, review it! Only if you want it to continue, of course. And even if I DO continue it, I'll still most likely end up updating Chaos 1/2 faster than Finishing Moves. Okay, I'll shut up now.  
  
Anyway, Read 'N Review! Constructive Criticism will be welcomed, Flames will be forwarded to Saddam Hussein. And for those with questions, my e-mail is: ReD2in@hotmail.com  
  
Hello??  
  
Anyone out there??  
  
Anybody??  
  
sigh 


	3. Episode 03: It's No PLace For CatNapping...

Intro: Third chapter is finally up!! By the way, what happened to all my reviews?? *sniff, sniff* Maybe this chapter will generate a few more.  
  
Disclaimer: WHAT???? WHADDA YA -MEAN- IT'S NOT MINE???  
  
Warnings: Currently unedited, manga language  
  
Legend:  
"Quotes"  
'Sub-quotes'  
EMPHASIS  
-Emphasis-  
[Thoughts]  
*Sounds*  
|Panda signs|  
  
------------{ Chaos 1/2 }------------  
  
------{ Episode 03: It's No Place For Cat-napping, Either }------  
  
After running down a few hallways, Ranma finally spotted an open window, "Oh, look! A shortcut!" With that he spun and jumped backwards out the window, with Kuno following shortly there-after.  
  
The panting student body finally caught up and looked out the window, "Hey! Isn't this the third floor?"  
  
"Good thing there's a pool down there."  
  
Outside, Ranma finally noticed the swimming pool, and a wide grin spread across his face, "Hey, look! A training opportunity!! Whooo!!!"  
  
SMACK / SMACK  
  
Up above, half of the student body winced. The other half stared in disbelief.  
  
"Ooooo... That HAD to hurt!"  
  
"Did he just do... a BELLYFLOP?!?!"  
  
Down below, two bodies floated to the surface of the pool. Both of them lay face-down and unmoving. Finally Ranma's body twitched and he slowly swam over to the edge of the pool. He climbed out, then calmly shook himself off and looked himself over. The entire front side of his arms and his face were red, as were his feet, which were still bare. After finishing his examination, he voiced his judgement, "Ow." Mass face-fault ensued.  
  
Kuno finally twitched into consciousness and he thrashed upright, coughing water. Ranma walked over to the edge of the pool and knelt, holding out a helping hand to the sputtering kendoist. Surprised, Kuno grudgingly allowed himself to be helped out of the pool. After wringing his robes dry, he turned to the red-haired boy and, to many's surprise, bowed formally, "Tatewaki Kuno thanks you, warrior, for your assistance."  
  
To more surprise, Ranma bowed in return, "This humble warrior accepts your thanks, User of Sword. This warrior asks that we continue our battle where we left off?"  
  
Kuno nodded and shook his robes out once more, "Indeed we shall."   
  
"Then this one asks for a weapon of similar dimensions."  
  
Kuno looked surprised as drew another bokken from out of his robes, "Then you also know the way of the sword."  
  
Ranma shook his head, "No, but I'm gonna to try and learn."  
  
Kuno shook his own head in an amused fashion, "Thou art truly a fool... Ranma Saotome." Even so, he tossed the weapon to the red-haired boy, who caught the spinning bokken deftly.  
  
Shifting his grip, he held the weapon one-handed, then raised the tip up and pointed it at Kuno, leaving only his sword shoulder facing the kendoist. A brief pale blue aura flared up around him for a moment, then dissipated as he infused his weapon with his ki, "Shall we begin?" The pony-tailed boy's ki-senses "saw" his opponent's aura flare up, but not into the visible spectrum. If it had, it would have been a dirty green, indicating depression mixed with... happiness?!?!, and pain. [Strange... What HAPPENED to this guy?? Damn, he's messed up.]  
  
Kuno raised his own bokken in readiness, "Ready?" After receiving a nod, he continued, "Hajme!"  
  
At the signal, Kuno moved forward with a surprising amount of speed, moving to knock Ranma's bokken from his hands in the first move. His own bokken connected with Ranma's, but to his surprise, it only moved a little. Recovering quickly, he moved back to prepare another strike, but Ranma moved forward as well, swinging his weapon swiftly but clumsily, and Kuno was forced to parry.  
  
Countering Ranma's blow with his own, he moved into his opponent's defenses with an upward slash, coming up under Ranma's guard and slashing him in the stomach, also ripping his shirt. Ranma's only response was a grunt as the air was forcefully expelled from his lungs. Otherwise ignoring the blow, the red-haired boy switched his grip on his weapon while still bent over the crouching kendoist and stabbed downward at his back.  
  
Ducking to the side to avoid the uncoventional tactic, Kuno slashed to the side as he went, but missed as Ranma over-balanced and rolled forward to regain his equilibrium. Still holding his weapon in a reverse grip, he blocked a strike from behind and ducked down and back, under the kendoist's swing.  
  
Righting his grip, he swung his bokken up into Kuno's face, then rolled backward between his opponent's legs. Unfortunately, his weapon caught on the kendoist's robes and his roll turned into a sprawl that was anything BUT graceful. Rolling to the side as Kuno turned and stabbed down at him, he regained his feet and spat out a mouthful of dirt, "Well, THAT was embarrassing." He raised his bokken and pointed it at Kuno again, "Shall we?"  
  
During this small repreive, Kuno took a moment to evaluate his opponent, [He is truly unskilled. Most definitely has no experience with the sword, but still... he's quite fast and has a good grip on his weapon, even one-handed.] Responding to Ranma's invitation, he tightened his grip and raised his own bokken, "On guarde."  
  
Ranma took the initiative this time, jabbing forward with his bokken. Kuno easily blocked and parried, twisting his weapon around his opponent's. Barely moving his body out of the way, Ranma blocked a double-strike through sheer speed and retaliated once more.  
  
His horizontal slash was deflected and parried with an upward swing by Kuno, who followed up with a quick reversal, scoring another hit on his part. Ignoring the hit again, Ranma swung sideways at the crouching kendoist, who ducked even further to avoid it. Straightening, he frowned as a few strands of hair floated down in front of his face, indicating that he hadn't ducked quite far enough. [What IS this man? He has no skill, yet he STILL manages to provide me with a challenge! He's FAST, and his skill grows with every passing moment!]  
  
He was forced to cut off his train of thought when Ranma took advantage of his distraction to attack again. Instincts took over and he deflected the rapidly incoming strikes, forced on the defensive temporarily. Recovering his wits, he blocked once more, then parried, landing a blow to Ranma's front shoulder.  
  
The red-haired boy hissed in pain, but otherwise ignored the injury, still clutching his bokken tightly in his fist. He brought himself up and stared at Kuno defiantly.  
  
Kuno looked on in amazement, [That was a solid blow! Any normal man would be writhing on the ground in pain!] "Very well, since you leave me no choice, I shall use my most prized technique." He raised his bokken to a ready position and prepared himself, taking a deep breath. Ranma raised his own bokken in a defensive position.  
  
"I strike! Aaatatatatatatatatatatataaaaa!!!" With that, Kuno rushed forward, his weapon blurring as he repeatedly stabbed at the dodging Ranma, who rapidly shifted back and forth, avoiding most of the strikes with ease and blocking the rest with his bokken. Still, Kuno pressed the attack, continuing to force the pony-tailed boy to avoid his strikes or block them.  
  
Eventually, Ranma's previous injury began to tell and his bokken faltered, leaving his defenses wide open. The kendoist took advantage of this, and the red-haired boy's weapon was knocked from his hand with a well placed blow. Small rips began to appear all over Ranma's body as Kuno's bokken continued to blur, hitting many vital points in rapid succession.  
  
Finally stopping to recover, Kuno stood panting in front of a still-standing Ranma, who's face was screwed up in a grimace. Finally, the red-haired boy dropped to one knee, breathing heavily, "Y- You win."  
  
Kuno stopped panting long enough to reply, "You *haa* put up a good fight, *haa* for a beginner."  
  
Ranma nodded, "Speed, mostly... But I think I'll win next time." Standing up straight, he slowly headed for the school-building, the only sign of any injury a slight hesitation in his step.  
  
Kuno watched him in amazement, [What IS this man?! He should have fainted by now!!"]  
  
The on-looking student body watched as the pony-tailed boy made his way into the school-building, then Kuno began to make his way towards the entrance as well. Seconds later a howl emitted from inside the building,  
  
"OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!" A group sweat-drop ensued.  
  
------{ Later that afternoon, in class }------  
  
Akane sat in her seat, not really paying attention to the teacher. Instead, she was watching Ranma, who was seated by the window and staring attentively at the teacher, one hand propping his head up. [What's -up- with him, anyway? I'll never admit it, but Ranma is a LOT better than he let everybody else see. That first spar in the dojo is proof of -that-. I mean I can beat Kuno, and Ranma can beat me, so what's the problem? Hmmm...... Maybe-] *THUMP*  
  
Her train of thought cut off, she looked in the direction the noise had come from and sweat-dropped. Apparently, Ranma hadn't been staring at the teacher so attentively after all. His head had slipped off of it's supporting palm onto his desk and he was now snoring quietly.  
  
Unfortunately, the sound had ALSO attracted the teacher's attention and an eraser was thrown toward the peacefully sleeping boy. At the last second, his hand snapped up and intercepted the incoming missile. Satisfied at at least getting a response, the teacher pointed at the hallway door, "Saotome-kun! I will NOT have you sleeping in MY class. Do you understand?"  
  
Silence greeted his outburst.  
  
"Saotome-kun!! Do. You. Understand?!"  
  
A light snore answered his question. He face-faulted.  
  
The teacher finally stood up and pointed at Akane, sounding a little stressed out, "Tendo-kun. Would you mind -terribly- much waking our little sleeping beauty UP?!" Akane nodded and moved over to the still-sleeping boy, who had shifted in his seat and was now curled up in the sunlight, somehow managing to look comfortable in an UNcomfortable position.  
  
[He's like a -cat- that way...] "Hey! Ranma, wake up!" No response.  
  
Irritated, she moved closer and shook him a little, "Wake UP, I said!!" He continued to sleep contentedly.  
  
"RANMA!!!" She angrily gave him a shove and sent him sprawling limply onto the floor. He merely shifted to a more comfortable position and continued to sleep soundly.  
  
"Ranma, if you don't get up this INSTANT, I'll- I'll- You'll get a bucket-full of water in your face!!" [Why do I even bother to warn him?!] Scowling, she left the room to get said buckets of water. Returning with a full bucket, she loomed over him, "Last warning, Ranma!!"  
  
Abruptly, he sat up, looking around wildly, "Wha- Where is it?" The student body looked at each other in confusion as Ranma continued to look around. Finally he seemed to lock on to something and moved toward the window, "That way!"   
  
Anger forgotten, Akane tugged on his arm, "What's where, Ranma?"  
  
He turned to looked at her for a second, a serious expression set on his normally faintly amused face, "Dark energy." That said, he turned and leapt out of the window. He hit the ground and bounced high into the air again, leaping out of the school-yard in one bound. In no time at all, he had reached the roof-tops and faded from sight.  
  
Akane looked after him for a second, then wandered back to her seat, confusion written all over her face, "Dark energy??" [He's fast......]  
  
------{ Eyecatch }------  
  
Genma-panda juggles some pieces of fruit, then snatches them out of the air with his mouth. One of his panda claws spear the last piece before he can toss it, and he shakes it off disgustedly.  
  
------{ End Eyecatch }------  
------{ Rooftops, Juuban district }------  
  
Ranma bounced to a stop, taking in deep lungfulls of air. Taking only a few seconds to recover his breath, he urgently looked around for the source of the evil energy he'd sensed. After searching for it for a minute and finding nothing, he hopped off of the building and landed lightly next to a passing pedestrian, " 'Scuse me, you seen anthing strange around here lately?"  
  
Taken aback, the man took a couple steps away, and stared at him for a second. Finally he seemed to come to a descision, "Yeah, I did."  
  
"Really?"  
  
"Yeah. You." He chuckled.  
  
Ranma leveled a stare at the man, "Har. Har. Har. I'm bein' serious here. You seen any suspicious happenings recently?"  
  
The man sobered and took a second to think about it, then shook his head, "Nope. Other than that Youma attack a few minutes ago, nothin'."  
  
"YOUMA attack?! Why didn't you say so in the first place?!"  
  
The man shrugged, "Ah, it's not -that- strange. And the Sailor Senshi already took care of it, anyway."  
  
"Sailor Senshi?? Who're they?"  
  
He looked the red-haired boy over again, "You must be new here in Juuban. The Sailor Senshi are the local Magical Girls. They fight for Love and Justice, and they wear -really- short skirts. Heh, heh. Anyway, they usually take care of the local youma for us."  
  
Ranma nodded as he took in this new information, "I see. Where -was- the last Youma attack?"  
  
The man gazed at him suspiciously, "Why do you want to know?"  
  
Ranma shrugged noncommitantly, "Oh, I just thought maybe they could use a hand, that's all."  
  
The man stared in disbelief for a second, then guffawed loudly, "Wha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!! Weh heh heh... heh! Oh, that was a good one!"  
  
Ranma adopted an indignant posture, "Hey! I'm bein' serious, here!"  
  
The man looked at him incredulously, "Didn't you hear what I just said?! These are -Magical- Girls!! They use MAGIC to -blast- the youma into itty bitty pieces!"  
  
"Magic?? Nah, I don't need magic, ta blast stuff. See?" He flared his ki to just under the visible spectrum and slammed his fist into the sidewalk. It sank into the concrete up to his elbow, cracking the area around it.  
  
The man turned pale and stumbled backwards a few steps, "Wh- what ARE you?!"  
  
The red-haired boy rolled his eyes, "What are you talking about?? I'm as human as anybody else." [I think.] "I just trained in Martial Arts all my life." [Both of them, pro'ly.] "Now I can use my ki. 'S all there is to it." he shrugged  
  
The man stopped retreating, but didn't relax, "H- h- human??"  
  
"Yeah. Heck, you could pro'ly do that too if you trained for about forty years."  
  
He didn't look convinced, "T-training??"  
  
"Yes! Now which way was the Youma sighted?"  
  
Slowly, the man raised a shaky finger, "That way."  
  
A grin passed over Ranma's face, "Hey, thanks! I owe ya!" He jumped up to the roof of a nearby shop and waved, "See ya!" With that, he turned and leapt over to the next building, disappearing from view.  
  
Ranma hopped over the roof-tops, searching the streets below for signs of battle. Finally, he spotted what he was looking for and leapt down to the sidewalk again, startling another bystander. Ignoring the startled woman, he looked around the scene of the battle.  
  
A patch of pavement smoked and bubbled as it cooled off; apparently, it had been melted recently. The acrid smell of electricity reached his nose and he looked up at a fried transformer, which was still smoking. [Familiar...] A nearby garbage bin had a corner neatly sliced off; closer examination revealed the edge to be glassy smooth. Finally, he noticed the strangest thing of all. A heart-shaped impression in the side of a building, with melting ice crystals surrounding the blast area.  
  
[Elemental attacks? Huh... Why is that phrase familiar??] Disturbed, he sat down in the middle of the alley to meditate. [If a "youma" is a MAGICAL beast-being-thing-whatever, I gotta figure out what kind of energy 'magic' is, so I can sense it better.]  
  
He slowly raised his aura past the visible spectrum, and it coalesced into existence around his body, pale blue once more. For a moment, it peacefully curled and twisted around his body and he reveled in the warm feeling of power that it gave him. After basking in it's energies for a time, he slowly expanded his senses outward.   
  
Reaching the garbage bin first, he used his "ki-senses" to closely examine the clean cut. Sensing nothing out of the ordinary, he stretched his senses out to the sidewalk, where the pavement slowly cooled off. Nothing, unless you count the extreme heat still rising from the blast area. [Strange, I -should- be getting SOMETHING...] He turned his attention to the sparking transformer and was suddenly struck with an over whelming sense of familiarity. [Familiar! But WHY??? I'm not getting anything out of the ordinary... It's just plain old electricity up there.]  
  
Puzzled, he sent his senses to examine it more closely. Suddenly, as if in response to his probing, electricity arced from the transformer, striking Ranma directly on his head. Bright flashes blinded his eyes, a loud humming fillled his ears, and a feeling of ecstacy filled his whole body. [Strange... I never imagined getting struck by lightning would feel this... GOOD!!]   
  
Electricity continued to flow through his body, growing stronger by the second. Eventually the extreme pleasure slowly turned to pain as his body began to overload. Reacting with the crackling electricity, his own aura crackled and writhed, growing in time with the volts continuously being fed into his body. Fear welled up in his mind as his ki grew more and more wild, slipping from his control like the electricity it emulated. [If this keeps up, I'm gonna overload and burn myself out!!! Got... to get it... back under CONTROL!!]  
  
Trying desperately to ignore his growing pain, he concentrated on suppressing his ki again. He wrestled with the elusive energy, and it crackled and writhed like a snake, slipping out of his grasp again and again, much to his growing consternation. [COME -ON-!!! -MOVE-, DAMMIT!!!]  
  
Pain wracked his whole body, lights flashed and faded like a strobelight behind his closed eyelids, the humming in his ears began to fade, and consciousness was rapidly fading, and he was just about to give up. [But... I won't... die.. yet!! Not... this way!!!]  
  
And suddenly, he remembered.  
  
A sense of calm washed over him and he embraced his ki once more. Drawing from his newfound memories, he embraced the electricity, too. He carefully guided it and twined it with his own aura, and the energy began to subside, submitting to his control once more. With growing confidence, he exerted the same will on the electricity that he usually did on his ki, and it submitted also. A small part of his mind wondered why this was happening, but the part that used to be Randy Donahue would have smirked if it could; it knew. No, HE knew. [I'm- I mean, I was- No, Randy was the Elemental Master of Lightning!!!]  
  
He suddenly became aware of the painful sensation again. Only this time, he knew what to do. He opened his eyes, focusing past the strobe light effect into the sky, and released the stored energy. A gigantic lightning bolt lit up the sky as he poured forth his pent up energy, spiraling upward for several seconds until he depleted his reserves and collapsed back onto the scorched concrete of the alleyway, breathing heavily.  
  
A tired feeling crept over him as he lay there, grinning like a madman. [I DID IT!!! I mastered- No, RE-mastered the Lightning Element!!! Now I can go back... to trying to... master... the other... Elements... Whooo... What a trip...] Sleep quickly overcame him.  
  
------{ Several hours later }------  
  
Ranma slowly open his eyes to the feeling of pain. No, that wasn't quite right. It was more of an ache this time. For several minutes, he just lay there, grinning as he remembered his remastery of Lightning. His grin slowly faded as he remembered the other Elements, but beyond that, nothing. It seemed as if only a small part of Randy's memory had broken through.  
  
[Lightning: Mastered it, twice. Lessee, the -other- Elements... Fire: Why is THAT familiar, too? I'm sure I haven't mastered that one yet... Water: Hmmmm... Plays havoc with my Element- I mean, Lightning... Earth: Completely negates Lightning... Air: Isn't affected by much of anything... Spirit: Spirit is... !!!] Realization washed over him and he sat bolt upright, ignoring the wave of pain that accompanied the sudden movement, "Spirit is KI!!! I'm halfway to mastering it already!!!" He lay back down, grinning like a madman again.  
  
For several minutes, he lay there on the scorched concrete, putting his nearly exhausted ki supply to work healing his battered body. Abruptly, a slight shuffling sound alerted him to the presence of something -else- in the alley with him. Limply letting his head fall to the side, he looked over to see...  
  
"C-C-CAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Nearby pedestrians registered a bright flash, then a reddish blur exited the alley at speeds fast enough to kick up a dust trail. The blur shot down the street and soon disappeared from sight.  
  
Back in the alley, a blackened and singed white cat coughed twice and fell over, "What did I ever do to deserve THIS??!"  
  
------{ The Tendo Compound, Evening }------  
  
"Where IS that idiot?!?! School's long over and -I- got stuck picking up AFTER the jerk!!"   
  
"Well, you're not the one who had to give the vice-principal a believable excuse."  
  
You -didn't- have to stick up for him, Nabiki!"  
  
"Sure I did. He's my boyfriend, right?"  
  
"... Still you didn't have go -that- far..." *Thump*  
  
"Did you hear something, Saotome-kun?"  
  
Genma-panda growfed and held up a sign, |I think it came from the front door, Tendo-kun.|  
  
Kasumi calmly rose from her seat, "I'll go see what it is, Father."  
  
"Thank you, Kasumi."  
  
Silence reigned for a few seconds, then, "Your move, Saotome-kun."  
  
More silence.  
  
"Oh dear. Ranma-kun! What happened to you??"  
  
"Ranma?!" Concerned, Nabiki headed for the front door. Upon opening it, she gasped at the sight of Kasumi carrying a limp Ranma toward the house, "Kasumi? What happened?"  
  
"I don't know. I just opened the door, and there he was, lying face-up in the yard."  
  
After being carried inside, Ranma was laid on his futon, and a cold washcloth draped over his head. In the brighter light of the room, many bruises all over his body became apparent. Accompanied by the many cuts from his fight with Kuno, he presented a sorry sight.  
  
The whole family gathered around his futon, watching over him worriedly. Akane was the exception; she stood nervously in the doorway, as if she wasn't sure whether to worry over him like the rest, or leave.  
  
After nearly an hour of tense silence, Ranma finally moaned and opened his eyes, "Mmmmm... Did I...?" ,he whispered hoarsely, then coughed a couple times. Kasumi thoughtfully held a glass of water to his lips, and he drank. After finishing with his drink, he sighed heavily, then winced, "I suppose you all want an explanation for this..."  
  
"You bet we want an explanation, Boy! What could possibly have put you in this state?!"  
  
"Yes, Son! Tell us what you were up to."  
  
"Alright, alright. Calm down. Okay, the short version of today goes like this: Get up, go to school, get in a fight with Kuno, win, go to class, get sent to hall, get in another fight with Kuno, use a bokken, lose, head back to class, sense dark energy, head over to Juuban, find site of youma attack, get struck by lightning, re-master the Element of Lightning, get lost, get beaten up by gang of thugs, get lost some more, wander back here, collapse on lawn. Happy?"  
  
"No!" ,came the mostly unanimous reply.  
  
"Tough. I'm going to get some sleep. I'll explain everything in the morning."  
  
Any and all protests were cut off when Kasumi spoke up, "We'd better let Ranma-kun get his rest for now." The family was ushered out of the room, a multitude of questions floating through their thoughts.  
  
Ranma's last thought before he drifts back to sleep is: [DAMN!!! I FORGOT TO FIGURE OUT WHAT KIND OF ENERGY MAGIC IS!!!]  
  
------{ Eyecatch }------  
  
Ranma juggles several small balls, a small black pig, and a white-and-lavender cat, then fries a descending Genma-panda with a bolt of lightning.  
  
------{End Episode 03 }------  
  
Author's Notes: Alrighty, people. Go ahead and ask any questions you might have concerning this new development, and I'll try to get them answered in the next chapter. Either ask when you review, or e-mail me at the address listed below. Keep in mind that anyone who e-mails me may or may not have their questions answered before the next chapter is posted. However, there is a good probability that they will. :D You'll at least get a reply, at any rate.  
  
My Aura Guide:   
Happiness - Yellow  
Sadness - Blue  
Anger - Red  
Love - Orange  
Envy - Green  
Passion - Purple  
Fear - ???  
Pain - Black  
None - White  
(Any color turns darker when negative or when mixed with others, and lighter when positive or more pure.) If you have a color for fear, I'm open to suggestions.  
  
Anyways, R 'n R! Constructive Criticism will be welcome, Flames will be Utterly Useless. For those with questions, my e-mail is: ReD2in@hotmail.com  
  
Hello??  
  
Anyone out there??  
  
Anybody??  
  
*Sigh* 


	4. Episode 04: Rough Sailing

Intro: Oh, Lookie! A plotline! Seriously, I am SOOOOO sorry I took so long. After finishing Chapter Three, I started on this one, but I ran into problems and stopped writing for a while. But now I'm back and hopefully will be on a semi-regular basis. Oh, and if it seems a little "patched together", that's because it is.  
  
Disclaimer: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!! (This is the sound of a man who has just found out he DOESN'T own Ranma 1/2)  
  
------------{ Chaos 1/2 }------------  
  
------{ Episode 04: Ranma Meets the Sailor Senshi! A Nightmare Come True! }------  
  
He wandered aimlessly and leisurely through the streets of Tokyo. Suddenly, he heard a cry for help. Startled, he looked around for the source of the cry. Seeing nothing in the immediate area, he leapt up to the top of a nearby building. He waited for another plea for help, then began roof-hopping rapidly toward where he had heard it.   
  
Reaching his destination, he dropped to the ground and his eyes narrowed. A strange ebony being was fighting with a group of Magical Girls. Actually, it was more like a massacre. The entity simply shrugged off any attack they threw at it, magical or physical. Wincing in sympathy, he continued to watch the girls try to put up a fight.  
  
"Why don't you help them?" Said an unknown voice from his side.  
  
"GYAAAH!!" He turned and jumped back into a ready stance, then took in the voice's owner. A deep tan and long green hair were the details that implanted themselves in his head immediately. He relaxed as she made no move to attack, then finally made his reply, "Why don't YOU?"  
  
The woman simply gazed at him emotionlessly, "You know as well as I do." Inwardly she allowed herself to smile bitterly, [He's perceptive, at least.]  
  
He nodded, "So what are YOU doing here?"  
  
"What do you mean?" [He can TELL??]  
  
"You know what I mean. You aren't a part of this dream, either."  
  
Nodding to herself, she allowed a slight smile to grace her features. "I am the Senshi of Time. My name is Sailor Pluto, and THIS..." she indicated the fight, "...is a glimpse of the future.   
  
"The future?? Okay."  
  
"Believe me, this is what will come to pass... Unless you help those girls..."  
  
"No, no. I believe you. It's just that... Well, why me?"  
  
"In every dark and bleak situation, there appears a ray of hope. So far you're the only one who's shown up." A wry smile flitted across her face.  
  
"Okay, so why is it I'm having this dream in the first place?"  
  
"There are some things that even the Senshi of Time does not know."  
  
"Okay, whatever. So, why aren't you doing anything about this in the real world?"  
  
"I would if I could... but I've been sealed away along with the other Outers."  
  
A hint of anger slipped into his voice, "Sealed??? By who??" In answer, she merely pointed at the ebony being. "The Outer Senshi have failed to protect the galaxy from invaders for the first time."  
  
He turned back to the fightand watched the entity take out the last of the Magical Girls. Straightening from its fighting stance, it laughed , then began to speak in a gutteral voice,"Finally, the last obstacle is out of my way. I don't sense anyone else on this puny little planet that could possibly give me any challenge now!!!"  
  
A wave of fear crashed over him, followed by a wave of fury. Forgetting that he was in a dream, he jumped into the entity's field of vision, "Hey, you!!! Try taking ME on!!!"  
  
Without waiting for a reply, he leapt straight at it, charging a lightning bolt. The entity ducked back into fighting stance again as he closed the distance between them and threw his lightning bolt at it. Unfortunately, he was forced to twist away from his own bolt's path as the entity simply swatted it back at him. [Of course. He wasn't reacting to those girls' attacks either.]   
  
Ducking in close he started an attack, but was cut short as the entity countered him before he had even started. [It's fast!!]   
  
He started an even faster attack, but was swatted into the air before he could react. Wobbly landing on his feet, he grasped his ribs. [Strong, too!!! Maybe...]   
  
Rushing forward, he began charging lightning again. This time, he jumped into the air and was immediately slammed into the ground. Black spots floated before his eyes, but he managed to grin anyway.  
  
"Eat THIS, Monster!!!" This time a large lightning bolt struck from the sky, hitting the Monster directly on the top of it's head. It twitched. As did the red-haired boy's eye as he realised the amount of damage taken by the entity. Next to nil.  
  
The ebony being looked down at him and laughed, placing a foot on his chest, "Congratulations, gnat! You've managed to give me an itch! Unfortunately for you, I don't like to take chances. Good bye!" With that, it raised it's foot and stomped on his chest, crushing his body underfoot...  
  
------{ Nega-Space, Pluto's Prison }------  
  
Setsuna woke with a start, then looked around at... nothing. Absolutely nothing. Pitch blackness surrounded her, nothingness as far as she could "see". If not for the many, MANY years spent at the darkness of the Time Gate, she probably would have gone insane by now. It was one of the reasons she slept so much. At least in the dreamscape, there was color. Although she really wasn't sure which was worse, nothing or watching the Inner Senshi get slaughtered over and over.  
  
Which brought her this dream's strange occurence. That boy had appeared this time. He had quickly figured out the situation, but had been distracted by that Monster. Which reminded her; What HAD the thing said to get that boy to react so violently?? And how did he create those lightning bolts without magic?? She could only hope that they would somehow meet again.  
  
------{ Tendo Compound, Bedroom }------  
  
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!" Ranma bolted upright, grasping his chest. Slowly realising where he was, he slumped back omto his futon and wiped his suddenly sweaty palms on the blanket. [Damn!!! That thing took me out without breaking a sweat!! Definitely gotta step up the training. Wait... That Pluto woman said something about helping those girls... Oh, damn! I got some more questions for her... Oh well. Maybe I'll see her again.] Beside him, Genma-panda whipped out a sign and moved to clobber the red-haired boy. Deep in thought, Ranma absentmindedly held out a fist and broke the sign in half.  
  
------{The Next Morning }------  
  
"Morning, people!" Ranma hopped down the stairs and sat himself down at the table with the rest of the family. The Tendos stared at him. "What?"  
  
Kasumi was the first to regain her mental capacity, "Ara? You should get some more rest Ranma-kun."   
  
He smirked and waved her off, "Nah. I'm fine, Kasumi. I heal fast. An' besides, I got some more training to do."  
  
Genma stopped stuffing himself long enough to say, "Training AGAIN?? What's gotten into you, boy? You might even be worse than the Master when it comes to that!"  
  
"Would you believe me if I said there was an alien threatening the planet?"  
  
"Of course not, boy! There's no such thing as aliens!"  
  
Ranma snorted, "Oh, and I suppose there's no such thing as magic, either?" He turned toward Akane, "Say, I don't suppose you'd be interested in training with me would you?"  
  
She looked up at him, startled, "What? You mean seriously??"  
  
"Yeah, sure. I know you've got a lot of potential, but that ain't goin' nowhere if you don't use it. I gotta warn ya though, my training is tough, and sometimes it don't even seem like training, but it'll get you into shape faster than anything else."  
  
"I'd lo-" She stopped. A small part of her prodded her brain into action. {Oh, what I wouldn't give for more training! But... I don't trust him yet... What to do, what to do???} Finally she decided on an answer, "Um, let me think about it for a while."  
  
The red-haired boy smirked, "Good answer, but don't take too long. You'll start second guessing yourself, then you'll never get anywhere." Finishing his dinner, he stood up, "Well, I got some stuff to do today, so..."  
  
Genma jumped up from his seat, "Not so fast, boy! You still haven't explained what happened last night!!"  
  
Ranma smacked his forehead, "Ah! I KNEW I was forgetting something. Oh, well. Basically, it all started when I got into a fight with an Upperclassman and decided to use HIS weapon, which happened to be the bokken. I got in a couple hits before I lost, but I think I have his stlye down by now, so it wasn't a big loss."  
  
"WHAT?! How dare you, Boy? HOW couldyou lose to a -weapon user-??"  
  
"Aw, shaddup, Pops. If you can do better, I'd like to see it."  
  
The pudgy man drew himself up indignantly, "Hmph! Such a man is beneath my notice."  
  
"Ahem! You were saying, Son?"  
  
"Right. Well anyway, I got a little worn out from the beating I took so I was taking a nap to replenish my energy. Then some strong dark energy woke me up, so I headed over to Juuban to check it out. When I got to where I'd sensed the energy, the source was long gone, so I attemted to figure out what happened using my Ki. My probing activated a transformer above me which electrocuted me AND threw my Ki out of wack. I was about dead when I suddenly remembered something from Randy's life...."  
  
"..." His short pause stretched out into a loooong pause.  
  
"......" Followed by...  
  
"...AND???"  
  
Smirking, Ranma continued, "I remembered how to master the Element of Lightning!"  
  
"Stop joking with us, Boy! There's no way to 'master' lightning! Many have tried to master the Elements and all have failed. You can emulate them , but no more."  
  
Still smirking, Ranma held up a single finger. A small ball of crackling blue energy coalesced directly above his fingertip, humming with the distinctive sound of electricity. "Nah, I don't need ta joke." [I find the situation funny enough as it is!]  
  
Scoffing, Genma reached out to touch the small sphere above Ranma's finger, "Hah! You've just learned to emulate it, that's all! See? the real thing would-d-d-d- I-yi-yi-yi-yi-yi-yi." He suddenly stuttered as he lost control over his vocal chords. Twitching violently, he managed to withdraw his own finger from the sphere.  
  
"H-h how d-d-did you d-d-d-d-do it b-boy?" he asked, still twitching spasmodicly.  
  
Now wearing an outright grin, Ranma replied, "I told ya, Pops. I remembered something from Randy's life" He let the ball of lightning dissipate. "Anyways, after that, I started home and got lost."  
  
Nabiki, who had been quiet until now, spoke up, "Lost? How did you manage that?"  
  
"Um, I was following the dark energy signature so close, I didn't pay attention to where I was going. And what with it bein' a new area an' all, well..." He shrugged, "After that, I ran into a gang of punks, but I was too tired to fight 'em off, so I got beat up again. It took me a while , but I finally managed to drag myself home, but I got lost again on the way. And that's what happened last night. Anyways, since there's no school today, I'm gonna head over to Juuban again. I'm gonna try an' look up the Sailor Scouts."  
  
"What?!?!" Everyone except Kasumi face-faulted.  
  
Ranma ignored them and got up again, "Later!" With that, he was out the door and over the rooftops before they could recover.  
  
-----{ Juuban, Bedroom }-----  
  
Minako Aino lay back on her bed and sighed depressedly. Yet another potential boyfriend disrupted by a youma. She was beginning to hate those things with a passion.Thankfully she was able to vent her frustration on the youma instead of her friends. Although they were probably wondering why she had just yelled "DIE!!!" without making a speech. Her musings were interupted by Artemis, who limped in the door looking like something the- uh... dog dragged in.  
  
"Artemis!!!" She leapt off of the bed and cuddled him carefully in her arms,"What happened to YOU?!"  
  
The small white cat coughed once and tried to explain, "I was... going to check out the site of the youma ... attack for more clues, but there was someone already there... I think he threw a live wire at me or something, then ran off."   
  
"There was someone already there?? What was he doing at the site of a youma attack? Most people run away and don't come back for at least a day."  
  
"I dunno. I just want some sleep right now."  
  
Just then, her communicator began beeping urgently. Carefully laying Artemis on the bed, she opened her end of the channel, "What is it??"  
  
Ami's embarressed voice filtered through, "Minako!! We need back-up! As in right now! Something is attacking us!!"  
  
"Something?! What is it??"  
  
"No time to explain! Just come quickly!" With a blip, Ami closed the connection.  
  
------{ Eyecatch }------  
  
Genma-panda juggles some pieces of fruit, then snatches them out of the air with his mouth. A lightning bolt zaps the last piece before ha can eat it, and he glares off-screen.  
  
------{ End Eyecatch }------  
  
------{ Juuban, Fight Scene }------  
  
"Sailor Moon! Sailor Venus is on her way!"  
  
Sailor Jupiter dodged another swipe of the things claws and attempted to pummel it again, "Good! This thing's tough!!" She grunted as the creature snapped a kick into her solar plexus. Struggling to regain her breath, she almost didn't avoid the next swipe in time.  
  
As it was, Sailor Mars was forced to stop attempting to fry the thing and pull her out of the way, "Come ON, Jupiter! That approach obviously isn't working!"  
  
"Oh, like yours is any better?" She shot back sarcasticly.  
  
"Well at least it's reacting to my magic attacks! Whatever it is, it just ignores physical attacks!" Mars snapped back.  
  
Jupiter sniffed, "Hmph. Fine. I'll do it your way. Sparkling Wide Pressure!!!" Her magical lightning attack slammed into the monster's open palm and fizzled out. The monster continued to hold up it's hand for a moment, then cradled it close and started shaking it, as if trying to get rid of a sting. "... You're right. Let's just blast it. After all, it works SOOOOO much better than making it do that by HITTING it!!"  
  
"Waaaah!! Why do they have to get STRONGER every time we fight them?!"  
  
Tuxedo Kamen threw a rose at the monster, which bounced off, and leapt from the shadows, landing next to the wailing girl, "Fear not, Sailor Moon! For you shall vanquish this monster with the power of your love!"  
  
"Wha-hahahahaha!!!" The round of laughter from a nearby rooftop drew everyone's attention to a red-haired boy standing on the edge. Still chuckling, he dropped down to ground level and began walking toward the goup, "Wow! You guys are great!" The whole group (including the monster) stared, slack-jawed at the "incredible" feat.  
  
Still dazed at his somewhat dramatic entrance, Sailor Moon managed to reply, "Uh, thanks."  
  
Stopping, he stared at her, "Have you ever heard of sarcasm?" A low growl from behind him drew his attention to the monster, which had narrowed its eyes as it recognised him, "Gyaah! It's you!!"  
  
Sailor Mercury finally recovered and set her computer to scan everything about the encounter, "Have you met this thing before??"  
  
He stared at it intently, talking half to himself and half to her, "No, it's not the same. The one last night was more ebony colored, this one's more of a black rainbow, an' it's got claws."  
  
"Last night?"  
  
"It's a lot smaller, too, but that might have just been the dream.... What?? Oh, I had a dream about something like this last night. That one beat me up, let's see if this one's any good!" Leaving a gaping Sailor Mercury by the wall, he charged toward the creature, only to be intercepted by an irate Sailor Mars.  
  
"Where do you think -you're- going?!"  
  
Ranma's smirk vanished as he realised her intentions, "Where does it -look- like I'm going?? I'm gonna beat that thing up, seein' as how you don't seem to be able to do it yourselves."  
  
"Oh yeah?! And what can you do?! You're just a normal human!!"  
  
A scowl made it's way onto his face, "And just WHERE do you get off saying you're better than me??! Maybe you've got something I don't, but did you ever stop to consider that -I- might have something -you- don't??! Now get outta my way, before I get mad and hurt something!"  
  
"I am NOT going to let you rush to your doom like this!!!" She held out her hands blocking his way. Behind her, the monster raised a clawed hand, preparing to slice her to ribbons.  
  
His eye twitched, "I warned you..." Drifting off, he ignited his aura, leapt forward and planted his knee under her chin before she could react. She was out before she hit the ground. Not pausing, he headed straight for the monster, still going full speed. Upon reaching it, he flipped forward and axe-kicked the thing's right shoulder as hard as he could. There was a sickening *crack*, and the monster's arm fell limp.  
  
Launched back into the air with the force of his kick, Ranma spun in mid-air and round-housed the things head. There was another *crack*, and it's head was suddenly tilted at an odd angle. Belatedly, it raised it's hand to ward off the incoming strike- and fell over, dead. Several seconds later, it melted into a black ooze and evaporated.  
  
The Sailor Senshi were once again slack-jawed.  
  
Ranma stared at where the monster had been, "Well... That... was -pathetic-." Slack jaws decided that they weren't low enough and hit the ground. Ranma looked up, apolgetic, "Well it WAS!! I can't -believe- you people had a hard time with that thing!" He shook his head in disgust, " 'Help those girls', indeed! You guys need serious help."  
  
About that time Sailor Mars woke up from her unintentional nap, "Wha- The monster!! Where is it?!"  
  
Ranma looked over at her, "I killed it."  
  
"What?! You?! I don't believe you!!"  
  
Sighing, he turned to face her directly, "Alright, look at it this way. Have anyone else moved besides you and me?"   
  
Suspiscously, she looked around and saw the other Senshi still staring at the red-haired boy dumbfoundedly."All right, what did you do to them?!"  
  
Incredulousness made it's way onto his face, "NOTHING!!!" His expression turned thoughtful, "Hmmmm... Maybe they're just speechless at my fighting prowess."   
  
It was her turn to stare incredulously, "What?! Why you egotistical jerk!! I have half a mind to-" She was interrupted by Ranma's laughter as he cracked up.  
  
"Ha ha ha ha!! As if anyone would be that egotistical. Heh, heh... I can't believe you believed me." (Author's Note: ;D )  
  
"I don't! About the monster, anyway."  
  
"Well, since this seems to be the only way you'll believe me..." He slid into a fighting stance, "Let's fight!"  
  
"Fine! I guess I'll just have to show you why WE should be the ones to take care of the monsters around here!"She readied herself for a fight.  
  
Ranma simply scoffed, "Oh yeah? Then why were YOU the ones getting your collective asses kicked while I took it out with two hits. Granted, it was a lot weaker than I thought it'd be, but it was gettin' ready to kill you and I couldn't take any chances. Anyways, enough talk. Let's go!!"   
  
With that, he launched himself at the red-skirted Senshi, who held up a hand, intending to stop his punch (and him) before he hurt humself. Much to her surprise, he snapped a kick at her leg instead of a punch like his stance indicated. Pain lanced through her leg as the kick connected.   
  
[What the- ?! I'm in Senshi form! I shouldn't be taking THIS much damage!!!] Her train of thought was interruputed by another kick, a roundhouse this time. Recovering from her surprise, she barely managed to avoid the kick, but the wind nearly knocked her over. [This guy CAN"T be human!! He's WAY too strong!]  
  
Taking advantage of her lack of balance, Ranma pressed the attack and kicked up with his other leg while the first was still in the air, planting a foot solidly in her mid-section. Flipping backward, he landed a fair distance away from Sailor Mars as she staggered back, deprived of air. {CAN'T be human! Too fast! It feels just like I'm not transformed!!] Regaining her breath, she straightened and glared at the red-haired boy, "Okay, I don't know what you are, but you are going DOWN!!"  
  
Straightening only a little, he scowled at her, "Why does everyone keep questioning my humanity?! -I- am as -human- as the -next- guy!! Just because I can kick your ass doesn't mean I'm not human! Speaking of which, you're doing pretty good for someone with almost no training. Must be that 'magic' stuff I keep hearing about..."  
  
"Oh yeah?! Well, here's something ELSE magic can do for us!! Burning Mandala!!!" The ring of fire headed straight toward the startled Ranma, who dropped to the ground at the very last second.   
  
After the attack had passed, he slowly sat up and pinched out a burning hair, "Oooookay. Threat level just jumped up a few notches..." [Why didn't I sense that coming??!]  
  
A wordless yell was all the warning he had as Sailor Jupiter leapt high and came down, foot aimed straight for him. Desperately, he scooted backward, barely avoiding the strike. Nervously, he looked down at her boot, which was sunk into the concrete between his legs, mere inches away from his future children. He squeeked and scrambled backward even further until he was a safe distance away, "Hey!! Isn't that getting a little personal??!"  
  
Jupiter slid into a stance, "Well I am gonna dust -something-!! No youma attacks for WEEKS, and then something like this happens! I need to work off some stress!" She cracked her knuckles for emphasis.  
  
Ranma rose to his feet and moved into his favorite stance, up on his toes, fingers tucked in, and palms level with the ground, "Alright! Now the fun really starts!" He smirked. "Come on!"  
  
Jupiter rushed forward, ready to punch his lights out. Closing in, she punched staight at the pony-tailed boy, who didn't seem to react. At the very last moment, at the very point at which she thought it would be impossible to dodge, he did. He swayed back by several inches, his nose millimeters away from her gloved knuckles.   
  
[Now!] She thought, [While he's off balance!] Bringing up her leg, she snapped out a kick at close range. To her surpreise, she found her attempt blocked by a raised knee, then she suddenly felt pain in her nid-section as he snapped out a counter-kick. Staggering back, she stared at his position. He was -still- bent over backward, and his leg was still extended in a kick, but his hands were now in his pockets.   
  
He straightened, hands still in his pocktets, "Well, you've got more training than that other girl, at least."  
  
"Sorry I'm late, guys! What'd I miss?"As one they all turned and stared at Sailor Venus, who looked around, cheerfully oblivious to the incredulous expressions on their faces.  
  
"What? Another one?!" Ranma's exclamation drew her attention to the red-haired boy, and she promptly got hearts in her eyes as she stared at the bee-yuu-ti-ful HUNK standing opposite her friends. He noticed the lovestruck expression on her face and promtly got a nervous one on his own face.  
  
"Who's the HUNK???" These words sent him into a cold sweat until her frieands intervened.  
  
"Now's not the time Venus! This thing took out the other thing we were fighting, then attacked us!"  
  
"Well if he took out whatever you were fighting, why is he the bad guy??" Sailor Venus was genuinely confused.  
  
An irate Sailor Mars answered her question, "Didn't you hear me?? I said it ATTACKED us!!"  
  
The long-haired blonde pouted, "Aw, why do the good ones always have to be the bad ones?" Ranma sweat-dropped, along with the rest of the Senshi.  
  
"Wait a second, guys." A timid voice spoke up, drawing their attention to a confused Sailor Mercury, who had been silent since the beginning of the fight. "I scanned him with the computer, and aside from a few traces of things I can't identify right now, it seems as if he's completely human, although considerably more powerful than usual."  
  
"That's what I've been trying to TELL you!!! Jeeze, some people just don't listen!"  
  
Confused, Sailor Moon spoke up, "If you're a human... why did you attack us??"  
  
Ranma sighed, then began explaining, "Okay, first thing. Fire-girl here was-"   
  
"Hey!! We have names, you know!!"  
  
"... You do?" A mass face-fault ensued.  
  
After she recovered, Mars looked at him disgustedly, "YES!!"  
  
"Oh." He paused for a second, then asked, "What are they??" Those that had recovered fell over again.  
  
The girl with the blue skirt and red bow on her chest cheerfully popped up, "I'm Sailor Moon! And this..." She gestured at the girl with a blue skirt and light blue bow, "is Sailor Mercury! And this..." She gestured at the one in a red skirt and purple bow, "is Sailor Mars! This here... "She gestured at the one in a green skirt and pink bow, "is Sailor Jupiter! And this is the last of the Inner Senshi... " She gestured at the newcomer, dressed in a yellow skirt and blue bow, "Sailor Venus!" She finished with a flourish.  
  
Ranma nodded to each in turn, then blinked as he realised something. [Didn't that chick in my dream last night have a Sailor name?? And she wants me to HELP these idiots?!] He shook his head, "Anyways, as I was saying, Sailor Mars trying to stop me from helping you guys instead of working together like you should have..."  
  
"Well how was -I- to know you were that strong??!"  
  
Ignoring her outburst, he contuinued, "The monster was going to try an' make Sushi outta her, so I knocked her out to keep her from getting in the way while I took it out. "She came to afterward, and wouldn't believe me when I told her I killed it, so I had to show her how strong I was. Sailor Jupiter here managed to stop drooling over me and come help Mars. By the way, that was a little too close for comfort, okay??"  
  
Jupiter blushed embarressedly, "Sorry..."  
  
"Anyway, we were testing the other's defense (or at least -I- was) when Sailor Venus arrived for back-up and started drooling over me herself. You all know what happened from there."   
  
Mercury spoke up, "What was that remark about you said about having a dream about that thing??"  
  
"Well, it's like I said. I had a dream last night about you girls gettin' beat up by something similar, only the one I'm talking about was pure ebony, instead of that rainbow-black this one was, and it was more human-looking. This Pluto woman showed up and-"  
  
"You met -Pluto-??!" was the collective response.  
  
"Well YEAH. Now if you'd let me -finish-...... Thank you. She told me I was seeing a vision of the future an' asked me to help you guys."  
  
"She WHAT?!!"  
  
He rolled his eyes, "Thank you SO much for letting me finish my sentences. Now, she said she'd been sealed away by that ebony monster that was beating you guys up, (along with the 'other Outers', whatever that meant) and asked me to help you, although how the hell I'm supposed to do THAT is beyond me. 'Bout that time the monster finished slaughtering you and started to gloat over how there weren't any obstacles left, so I got mad an' challenged it."  
  
"And what happened??"  
  
"It slaughtered -me-, too. Good thing it was a dream or I'd be dead right now." He suddenly glanced at the sky, "Whoop, I'd better be headin' home. See ya tomorrow!" With that he jumped back up to the roof-top and left the dumbstruck girls to wonder at the abruptness of his exit.  
  
------{ End episode 04 }------  
  
Author's Notes: Whew! Finally done! As I said above: I had written the first part of this Chapter almost immediately after finishing the Third Chapter, but I was havng a hard time with the first scene. So, after loooong haitus, I gave up and rewrote the whole thing, and now the story's basically writing itself again! Lucky you!  
  
Someone mentioned in a reveiw that I was making an Uber-Ranma a little too quick, so in reply I make this statement: "You haven't SEEN Uber-Ranma yet!!!" Seriously, though. He may seem extra strong, but my intention is to put his skill level (right now) at around the Hiryu-Shoten-Ha stage. He has learned how to manipulate ki, but hasn't figured out how to throw it around yet. His natural speed is around Amaguri-ken speed, so he has no need for that move this time around. (Even if it IS one of his trademarks.) His strength is pretty much normal Ranma. The lightning is only the first of many steps to becoming the TRUE "Uber-Ranma". (Of course, that depends entirely on what your definition of "Uber-Ranma" IS.)  
  
The Sailor Moon series is supposed to be around the R Season, but it's been a LOOONG time sinse I've seen any Sailor Moon at all, so all of this is based off of three things: My memory, a SNES Game, and sparse fanfics (usually other cross-overs with Ranma). In other words, If you don't like the way I portray the Sailor Moon world, TOUGH! I'm gonne screw it up however I want! Same goes for anything ELSE I happen to cross-over with, too!   
  
Oops.  
  
Hey, where'd you all go?  
  
Anybody out there?  
  
*sigh* 


	5. Episode 05: The Long Awaited Mallet! Ran...

Intro: Wow! Another one already?! Alright, I'll admit I could work on my update speed, but I'm TRYING to produce some quality works here. And that's kinda hard to do when you're killing time for at least two Episodes. The part I'm actually looking forward to is when Ryouga shows up. Heh! At least I managed to inject some (albeit very minor) plot development. Meanwhile, here's something to keep you busy.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't gotta post this every chapter, do I??! Fine, I quit!!  
  
Legend:  
  
"Quotes"  
  
'Sub-quotes'  
  
EMPHASIS  
  
-Emphasis-  
  
[Thoughts]  
  
*Sounds*  
  
|Panda signs|  
  
------------{ Chaos 1/2 }------------  
  
------{ Episode 05: The Long Awaited Mallet! Ranma in La-la Land! }------  
  
"I'm home!" Ranma leapt over the wall of the Tendo compound and began walking leisurely toward the house. Nabiki greeted him at the door, a slight smirk playing over her face.  
  
"Hello, Ranma-kun. Have an interesting afternoon?" She asked pointedly.  
  
Returning a smirk of his own, he replied, "Yeah I did. Pretty fun, actually. Although I really gotta say, those Sailor Senshi are complete wimps when it comes to combat."  
  
"There's a reason they're called Magical Girls, Ranma-kun." She shook the bag of chips she was holding in a scolding manner.  
  
He shrugged, "Yeah, there probably is, but it got too late for me to really test 'em properly. I'm gonna hunt 'em up again tomorrow." He headed for the house, intent on finding a snack. Nabiki followed, already nibbling on a potato chip.  
  
No concern showed on her face, but a little managed to creep into her voice anyway, "I really think you're biting off more than you can chew, even if you -did- kill off that youma by yourself."  
  
Ranma paused in rummaging through the refrigerator to look at her and raise an eyebrow, "Huh? How did you find out about that?"  
  
Safely away from the subject of her concern, she rolled her eyes, "There is this marvelous little invention on this planet called the 'Television'. Really, Ranma-kun. You really should be a little less obvious about the things you do around here."  
  
Finding a bag of carrots, he pulled it out and closed the door, "Yeah, you're probably right. Oh well. Not much I can do about it now." He shrugged and took a bite of carrot.   
  
Nabiki suddenly noticed what he was eating and shivered, "How can you stand that... HEALTHY stuff??" She gestured at her bag of chips. "Now THIS is a snack!"  
  
Ranma shrugged and headed for the family room, "I dunno. I guess when we were on the road, the one thing Pops did for me was make sure I ate healthy. Can't be a good Martial Artist without a good body, after all."  
  
Genma grunted indignantly from his position just outside on the porch, "Hey, it was the only food I could steal!"  
  
Nabiki rolled her eyes again, "Whatever. Just make sure you don't eat too many. Kasumi's making a carrot dish tonight."  
  
Ranma looked around, not seeing the calm, serene girl anywhere, "Speaking of which, where IS Kasumi, anyway??"  
  
"Oh, she went shopping for tonight's supper. It seems we ran out of supplies earlier than expected."  
  
------{ Tendo Compound, Dojo }------  
  
Akane launched a straight punch at her father, who moved backward to avoid it. She followed up with a kick, but he stiffly jump over it and her to land behind her. Turning around, the black-haired girl closed in, grappling with the older man, memories of Ranma rising up in her mind...  
  
- - - - - - -  
  
["Yeah, well your 'little girl' also has the potential to be a great fighter. It'd be a shame to let that potential go to  
  
waste."]  
  
- - - - - - -  
  
["Yeah, you're tough. You can make it."]  
  
- - - - - - -  
  
["......If you can do that, I look forward to the day when I can see you become all you want to be."]  
  
- - - - - - -  
  
Suddenly she broke away from the hold and straightened from her stance, "Dad?"  
  
"What is it, Akane-chan?"  
  
"Can we spar? I mean seriously, like what Ranma and Saotome-san do."  
  
Soun sighed, feelings of fear of losing his daughter fighting with pride at her ambition. He knew what had brought this on! "Oh, you're so PERFECT for each other!" He wailed, hugging his precious daughter tightly.  
  
"Da-a-a-ad!!" Akane struggled in his hug, half angry, half embarrassed.  
  
Finally, he straightened, tears still steaming down his face, "Of course, Akane-chan."  
  
After taking a moment to clear his mind- and face, he settled into his stance once again. Akane did the same and they bowed. Soun took the intitiative this time, and slid forward, fist leading the way. Akane deflected the blow and retaliated, leading with her elbow. The mustached man backed away and kicked up at her, forcing her to back up also. Closing in again, he swung a fist upward, and Akane was forced to retreat again.  
  
This time she responded by snapping a kick of her own at him. He blocked with a knee and moved forward to punch again, but she was ready for him this time. Deflecting his punch, she slid forward and attempted to foot-sweep the older man. Soun jumped up and flipped away to avoid being tripped, but landed stiffly and was forced to recover. Akane took this opportunity to close in once more, and the mustached man was soon retreating rapidly, blocking as many punches as he could. A fair amount still slipped through, and he finally jumped back and bowed in defeat.  
  
Akane looked at him, surprised. He took a moment to stop panting, then explained, "Akane-chan, I am afraid that your old man is getting too old for this. I think it would be best if you furthered your training with someone else."  
  
Akane looked at him pensively, "Are you sure, Dad?"  
  
Leaning on his knees, he nodded, "Maybe there's still hope for the school itself. Your Sensei is out of shape, but maybe you can surpass what I once was. I'll be watching you, Akane-chan." Turning, he walked stiffly out the door, leaving Akane to ponder the implications of her "graduation".  
  
------{ Juuban, Hino Shrine }------  
  
"Okay, what is he exactly??"  
  
Ami retreived the battle information from her computer and studied it again, "It's like I said: He seems to be completely human, except for an abnormally high Bio-energy reading and minor traces of a couple different things I can't seem to indentify..."  
  
Rei paused in wrestling with Usagi for her manga, "I DID feel a lot of Ki around him when we fought. I use a lot of Ki with my fire-readings, but this guy had a LOT more than I do. Maybe he's an energy leech?"  
  
Ami shook her head, "No, I doubt that. According to my scans, he never actually absorbed any energy. Which means that either he's got a special power source or that it was ALL his. But that doesn't explain WHY he has so much energy. Maybe it has to do with the other thing that's puzzling me. His DNA is all messed up. It seems to be mostly human, but it has traces of something even the Mercury Computer can't identify."  
  
Makoto leaned forward, "What do you mean 'can't identify'? Can't that thing identify almost anything??"  
  
The short-haired girl looked confused, "That's exactly the point. It's supposed to, but what ever this is, even the Mercury Computer can't figure out what it is."  
  
"Oh, how sweet!!"  
  
"Give me that!"  
  
"No way! You weren't reading it!"  
  
"I said give it back, Meatball-head!!"  
  
Ignoring the outburst, Minako decided to put in HER two yen, "Well whatever he was, he was a major hunk!!"  
  
Makoto elbowed her in the ribs, "Just remember, I saw him first!"  
  
"No way! First come, first serve!!"  
  
"Yeah, and I intend to get to him first!"  
  
Ami sighed as yet another meeting between the Senshi devolved into a shouting match, "Meeting adjourned."  
  
Nobody listened.  
  
------{ Tendo Compound, House }------  
  
"Ranma??"  
  
The red-haired boy looked up from putting the bag of carrots back into the refridgerator, "Yeah, Akane?"  
  
"I-" Her voice stopped, and she blushed suddenly. "Um, I- Uh..."  
  
He watched her dither for a bit, then finished putting the carrots back, "Yeah?"  
  
"Well, I was thinking... Um- about..." She trailed off, blushing furiously. She had forgotten what she had wanted to say! Ranma studied the blushing girl until she gave up and turned to rush from the kitchen.  
  
Suddenly he grinned in understanding, and called out to Akane as she left the room, "Hey, Akane!" Still blushing, she stopped in the doorway, not daring to turn around. "I'm gonna head over to Juuban tomorrow for some special training. You wanna come with me?"  
  
Suddenly she turned around as her face lit up with a smile, "Really?? You mean it?!"  
  
Taken aback by her sudden switch of attitude, he nodded, "Sure, why not. It'll give ya an idea of what my training's like."  
  
Tears of happiness came to her eyes and she launched herself at the shocked boy, hugging him tightly, "Oh thank you!! Thank you so much! I've always wanted to be a Martial Artist and now I- I... GET OFF ME, PERVERT!!!" Embarrassed by her own actons, she covered it up by grabbing her mallet and smashing the (still) stunned boy into the floor. Between the mood swings and the blow to the head, Ranma's mind decided it had had enough and shut down.  
  
------{ Dreamscape }-----  
  
They were fighting the Entity again. This time they were winning. It was not an easy win by any means, but they were making progress. After months of fighting amongst each other, enemies and friends alike united to become the "unstoppable force" to the "immovable object". Fortunately, the Entity was turning out NOT to be that immovable object.  
  
And no, I am not talking about the Sailor Senshi.  
  
He was the Lightning Master, capable of creating and controlling any aspect of Electricity. His inavertant trip to Earth had given him the knowledge of electro-magnetics, which he used to boost his strength through metal plates added to his clothing, among other things. Like his Element, he fought with a speed and ferocity unmatched, lessened only by his complete lack of grace. He slashed away with his Crescent Knives, which curled around in front of his hands not unlike their name.  
  
Next to him was his twin sister, Ryla Donahue. She was the Flame Master, capable of doing the same with Fire as he could with Lightning. Her own trip to earth had yielded the ability to absorb the light around her, which boosted her ninja skills of invisibility considerably. Unmatched agility added to her ability to read patterns (even in the unpredictability of their fighting style) made her a formidable fighter, and her gracefulness made up for her brother's lack thereof. A single Katana was her main weapon, while she backed it up with throwing knives and other ninja tricks.  
  
Opposite Randy was his greatest rival, Rocky Danner. As indicated by his name he was the Stone Master. All the earth and stone on the planet heeded his call, including all sorts of metals. His trip to Earth had given him knowledge of even more types of stone to use to his advantadge. His great strength and endurance had carried him through many, many fights, which explained his lack of armor. He carried a huge Crescent Blade as big as he was, somehow wielding the heavy weapon effectively.  
  
Next to Rocky was his girlfriend, Regina "Reggie" Rivers. She was the Water Master. Any liquid was under the domain of this icey woman, but pure water was her forte. After her trip to earth, she learned to affect the temperature of the liquids she controlled, giving her more experience with ice. A cold fighter, she calculated carefully and moved accordingly. An apprentice to the Weapons Master, she carried many weapons, but seemed to favor two curved scimitars as her weapons.  
  
To the side was the Weapons Master, Adan Winston, also known as the Air Master. He controlled every aspect of the air and wind. This silent fighter danced with the winds he created, moving as one with his Element. His many, many weapons aided his already formidable arsenal, and he used each with equal efficiency.  
  
To the other side was Jase Jonse, the Spirit Master. This man used his own life force to aid his every move, boosting his every attribute beyond the limits of his body. Even beyond that, he could use it to create a physical force, mimicking many different things. Because of this, he used no weapon, as his own body was a living weapon.  
  
Saving the best for last, Emperor Kun himself hovered above the fight, aiding the fighters below in any way he could. This was actually quite a lot, mind you, as the Emperor Kun was the sole living Master of the Elements. Chosen completely at random, the Master of the Elements was born once every generation, and raised from childhood to rule the entire planet.  
  
And yet, this Elite team of fighters was barely making headway against the Entity...  
  
------{ Eyecatch }------  
  
Genma-panda juggles some pieces of fruit, then snatches them out of the air with his mouth. This time nothing happens and he looks around in surprise.  
  
------{ End Eyecatch }-------  
  
Randy jumped high into the air and came down, using his power over electro-magnetics and the metal plates hidden in the soles of his boots to pause his descent for a short moment. Simultanously charging a lightning bolt and striking out with a kick, he attempted to take the Entity by surprise. Unfortunately, the Entity had become VERY hard to surprise, and he was forced to use his natural agility to avoid a swipe by its fist. Also unfortunately, the near miss wasn't enough, and he felt a burning pain tear across his back as the Entity's outstretched fingers made contact.  
  
He fell to the ground ungracefully, and Ryla darted in to distract the Entity before it could kill the Lightning Master. Tossing a deceptively small ball of fire at the Ebony monster, she faded from view as it swatted the projectile back at her and shook its hand in pain. Her fireball had been a little too "hot to handle", so to speak.   
  
Taking an opening from above, Emperor Kun launched a massive spirit blast at the Entity. Sensing the danger, it moved to the side, but was blocked by Adan, who rapidly swung a spiked chain at it, followed by a Vaccuum Blade. He would have ended the fight quickly by blocking the air around the Entity, but it seemed that it didn't need to breathe, either.  
  
Trapped by the Spirit Blast, the Vaccuum Blade, and sensing an ominous rumble in the earth below it, the Entity raised its hands and a black transparent sphere shimmered into existence around it. Both the Vaccuum Blade and the Spirit Blast dissipated harmlessly against the shield, but Adan's chain continued through, undisturbed. Unfortunately, the Entity launched a shadowy blast of its own at the chain from inside the shield, while simultanously moving away from the spot he was standing in. A split-second later, a geyser erupted from the earth, hardening into a spiked icicle as soon as it left the ground.  
  
Adan used the wind currents to shift out of the way of the black projectile and tossed out a couple of throwing knives in retaliation, speeding their arc with more wind currents. The icicle evaporated as soon as Reggie realized that she had missed, and walls of Tentite shot up around the Entity in its place.  
  
It took a brief moment to chuckle before it launched another shadow blast, shattering the cage in an instant. Jase took this opportunity to attack it hand-to-hand, and his fists slammed into the Entity's palms hard enough to send out a shockwave from the impact point. Unfazed by the ineffectiveness of his punches, Jase pressed on, blurring from sight from time to time as he attacked the Entity ruthlessly.   
  
Having recovered from the scratches he had just recieved from the Entity, Randy joined Jase in forcing it on the defensive, his own Spirit aiding his strength to an extent. Suddenly, it twisted away from an unseen attack and slashed at thin air. A moment later, Ryla faded into sight, skidding painfully to a stop several yards away. Randy was about to break off when she demonstrated her own use of Spirit and stood up, the scratches on her vest the only sign of damage.  
  
Grinning, she joined the two in pressing the attack while Emperor Kun summoned a lightning bolt from above. Too fast for the Entity to raise its shield again, it struck the ebony monster directly on top of its head. It paused to shake off the attack, and the other three took advantage of the opening and began to pummel it.  
  
Randy drew his Crescent Knives from sub-space and let go of his Spirit-boosted strength to enhance his already blinding speed. Ryla drew her Katana, faded into the shadows, and hid her Spirit as best as she could. Jase switched places with Rocky, who summoned Tentite armor around his entire body. Surprisingly, the huge weight of the armor only seemed to make him stronger. His first punch slammed into the Entity's palms (much like Jase's had) and forced the Entity backward!  
  
Placed on the defensive once more, the Entity began sporting small slashes and bruises. It could barely keep up with the Lightning Master's blinding speed, Rocky's attacks were too strong for even IT to handle, and that annoying girl kept slashing it from nowhere. Then, to top it off, that blasted Emperor Kun was about to launch a humongous fireball at it again.  
  
Letting out a growl of frustration, the Entity blew its attackers back with its aura, and... grew. It wasn't its muscles that grew, it just seemed to be a little bigger all around. Finishing its power-up, it blinked from its spot and slammed into Randy with the force of one of Rocky's punches. Caught completely by surprise, the Lightning Master didn't even have time to react and was thrown into Rocky. Both of them slammed into the side of the mountain, leaving the rest of the group staring in disbelief. Even Emperor Kun lost his concentration on the fireball he was gathering, and it dissipated back into the air.  
  
Taking advantage of their distraction, the Entity leapt upward at Emperor Kun, locking its hands together. Reaching the apex of its jump, it flipped forward and slammed its hands into the Emperor's head, sending him hurtling into the ground. Propelled further into the air by its punch, it righted itself in midair and began raining shadow blasts onto the people below.  
  
Having recovered by this point, Jase ignited his own aura again and raised his hands in the same fashion the Entity had earlier. A bright green sphere of energy expanded from his body to enclose the rest of the Gaians, except Randy and Rocky, who were out of range. At this point it would be a moot point, anyway. The two were out cold.  
  
The shadow blasts slammed into the Spirit Shield, causing it to shudder under the stress, but it held. Barely. The moment the blasts stopped, Jase collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath. Adan, Reggie, and Ryla took up positions around Jase and the fallen Emperor Kun.  
  
As it began its fall back to the ground, the Entity angled its descent and accelerated its fall, aiming its fist directly at the trio below. Just as it reached striking distance, the three Gaians released their respective Element at the same time. The triple blast of fire, water, and air twined together as one, and the icey-hot tornado met the incoming Entity- and stopped it in its tracks.  
  
The shock being forcefully stopped from "invisible speed" combined with the multiple elements served to keep the Entity from moving while Adan slashed like a madman, releasing many, many Vacuum Blades at the fallen Entity. Each and every one hit their target, the resulting cut oozing ebony liquid.  
  
After a moment of stillness, the Entity sat up with a howl of rage and powered up again. Refusing to be surprised again, Adan attempted to close in, but was swatted aside before he do a thing. He was hurled into the side of the mountain, causing a small landslide around the area where he had impacted.  
  
Ryla and Reggie stood back to back in the center of the devastation. They were the only ones left. Randy and Rocky were knocked out for who knows HOW long, Adan and Emperor Kun had been taken out by the Entity and were presumed dead, and Jase had nearly burned himself out. It was hopeless. And they had been doing so WELL, too!   
  
Resolutely, the two rivals took stances and hoped to fend off the Entity a little longer. Completely healed of its injuries, it leapt at them faster than Randy had been attacking it earlier. Reggie was still in her stance when it chopped at her knees, sank a fist into her stomach, then knocked out a few teeth with a uppercut. She was unconscious before she had left the ground.  
  
Growling, the Entity turned to Ryla's position and grunted in surprise. No Ryla. It quickly searched the area for her Spirit, but couldn't find it. It snarled in frustration and powered up AGAIN, everything within range blown away from it. Pain welled up in its arm and it looked down to find a scratch that hadn't been there before. More pain welled up as several invisible ojects buried themselves in various vital spots on its body.  
  
It snarled again, but managed to calm itself to an extent. It waited patiently for several minutes, waiting for another strike, but it never came. Its red eyes glowed with fury, but it held its ground and waited some more. Suddenly it noticed that it had become very warm in the immediate area.  
  
To understand what is happening, one must first understand how the Elemental Fighters used their Element. Most of the time they used their innate Gift to create the Element out of their own Spirit. However, it has been proven that they CAN use other energy sources as "fuel", such as light. This was exactly what Ryla was doing. She was absorbing the light around her and storing it for future use. At this point, she had been holding the invisibility for far longer than she ever had before, therefore she had also been storing huge amounts of energy for longer than ever before. The previously unknown side-effect to this was that she began leaking the excess energy as her Element: Heat.  
  
Concern welled up as her body began to reach critical with all the energy that she had been absorbing, but she dared not drop her invisibility, lest the Entity see her and- well, she didn't really feel like finding out. And yet, she dared not make a move, either, lest the Entity somehow sense her like it had before and counter-attack. She knew that she couldn't survive another attack like the one it had hit her with before, especially since it had powered up thrice since its last attack had connected.  
  
Thus, they were at a stalemate. Ryla could not attack without giving herself away, and the Entity could not find her while still invisible without letting its own guard down.  
  
This would have continued on indefinitely had not the energy Ryla was absorbing reached critical mass. Suddenly an overwhelming shockwave of heat burst from Ryla's position, and she faded into view once more, her hair already on fire. This wasn't really a problem for her, as it was impossible to be hurt by your own Element, but she was more concerned with the overwhelming amount of energy threatening to burn her body out.  
  
Unsure of exactly what was going on, the Entity shifted back a little and watched the awesome sight before it. Ryla's hair had burst into flames and shockwaves of heat continued to pulse from her body. Desperately, she closed her eyes as she concentrated on clamping down on the energy, which threatened to go out of control at any moment.   
  
So caught up in her internal battle, she never noticed that she was now floating several feet off of the ground. Nor did she notice that the heat pulsing from her body had stopped pulsing and had turned into actual flames, despite the fact that there was nothing to burn. Slowly the flames condensed themselves and took shape, forming a giant aura around the floating girl. The last thing the Entity saw before she disappeared behind the aura of flames was that her eyes had snapped open and that they were pupilless, the same color as the golden fires surrounding her.  
  
Then, with a final wave of heat so hot that even the Entity was forced to retreat quite a few yards back, the golden aura bloomed upward and split at the top, even as it grew at the bottom. The two splits "fell" to the side, and stopped horizontally, at the same time as another, smaller protrusion grew again at the split in the middle. By this time, the Entity realized exactly what he was looking at. This girl had just turned into a giant bird made of fire! A Firebird!!  
  
The Entity carefully maintained its distance and launched a testing shadow blast into the flaming aura. It dissipated before it even got near the body of the giant bird. Unnerved at this turn of events, it powered up again, and launched another probing blast. This one did not dissipate, but accomplished something far worse. It drew the attention of the Firebird.   
  
The burning bird flapped its immaterial wings, somehow creating a gust of wind anyway, and took to the skies. Focusing its aura, the Entity blasted after it, intent on killing the thing before someone got hurt. Namely, itself. Its plans got a little sidetracked as the Firebird flapped its wings and sent a huge gout of fire blazing toward the Entity. The ebony monster responded by raising its black shield again. It was successful in keeping the actual flames away, but the heat still seeped through, leaving the Entity with a bad case of sunburn.  
  
Increasing trepidation crept into the Entity's mind. It only had a couple more powerups left and it didn't want to waste them. Unfortunately for it, it looked like was going to have to use them. growling in frustration yet again, it paused in midair and curled up into a fetal position.  
  
A moment later a blast of power washed over the Firebird as the Entity straightened with a roar and grew even larger. By this time it was probably about the size of a car, and who knows how much power it had left. It launched another geyser of fire at the Entity, which was evaded. Undaunted, it launched another, more powerful beam and kept it up. Unfortunately, this newest power-up had proven to be at least five times as powerful as the others, rendering it fast enough to dodge even the continuous beam of fire and get up close.  
  
Flaring its aura, the Entity blasted forward, straight through the center of the flaming mass. The Firebird jerked and let off a keening wail, even as it responded by flipping around and firing another beam. The Entity dodged this one as well, but as it turned to face the Firebird again, it noticed that the hole it had made was already closing up. And the Firebird didn't seem to be running out of energy, either.  
  
And so they were at a stalemate once more. The Firebird could not hit the Entity, and the Entity could not HURT the firebird. At least not permanently.   
  
Randy and Rocky were the first to regain consciousness, being the first ones hit after the power-up. Rocky shoved the smaller boy off of himself as he woke, which in turn awakened Randy. Emperor Kun pushed himself off of the ground and rubbed his sore neck with a grimace. Jase shakily rolled over and sat up, regaining his own energies at an alarming rate. The pile of rocks covering Adan suddenly shattered in all directions as a tornado engulfed the area. A geyser of water launched an angry Reggie into the air, and she landed back on the quickly freezing ground with a scowl.  
  
As one they all looked at the staring contest going on over their heads, and began absorbing the excess energies leaking off of the firebird. Thankfully this was quite a lot, and while the Entity and the Firebird floated in midair and stared at each other, the group below refilled their energy reserves.   
  
Except for Emperor Kun, who continued to absorb the energy radiating from the Firebird, reaching power levels he could never accomplish on his own. Taking their cue from the Elemental Master, the others began absorbing even more energy from the flaming beacon in the sky.  
  
Once they had reached a satisfactory power level, the group began finding ways to reach the battle above. Emperor Kun and Jase flared their auras and burst into the sky. Reggie and Rocky formed slabs of Ice and Stone respectively, and rode them into the air. Upon realizing that Randy wasn't following them, they paused and looked down at him.  
  
Randy smirked and held up his left arm, where a simple bracelet nestled directly in front of his bracer. Their eyes widened in comprehension and he nodded, the smirk widening into an all-out evil grin. As one they franticly shook their heads as he did the forbidden. He pulled off the bracelet and- "WAKE UP RANMA!! IT'S TIME FOR OUR MORNING WORKOUT!!!"  
  
Wait a minute...  
  
------{ Tendo Compound, Guest Room }------  
  
Ranma awoke to the delightful sensation of almost achieving flight. Unfortunately, almost only counts in Hand Grenades and Horse-shoes, and his involuntary attempt at flight ended abruptly in the koi pond. The realization of what had just happened washed over him, along with feelings of anger, and the red-haired boy leapt from the pond as his aura bloomed into existence.  
  
"DAMMIT, POPS!!! YOU JUST HAD TO INTERRUPT THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF THE DREAM, DIDN'T YOU??!" He punctuated his tirade with a lightning bolt from above, and Genma found himself unable to reply due to the way his body was twitching uncontrollably. Not bothering to land lightly, Ranma left a couple foot prints in the ground by the pond and stomped into the house, aura still blazing an angry purple.  
  
Soun found himself unable to remove his toothbrush from his mouth as the fuming boy swept by, and even the sooo-out-of-it Nabiki edged away from him as he made his way back upstairs.  
  
Having taken a quick bath and recovered from his outburst, Ranma was in a somewhat cheerful mood again. Breakfast was a quiet affair, except for Ranma and his father casually fighting over the food. Well, -Ranma- was fighting casually. -Genma-, on the other hand, was desperately trying to salvage what was left of his food as Ranma lashed out with lightning speed and stole another pickle.  
  
"How dare you, boy?! Have some respect for your poor old father!!"  
  
Ranma simply smirked and snatched yet another pickle, "I don't think so, old man. This is payback for all that training you put me through on that trip. Besides, I'm hungry. I missed dinner last night 'cause I was unconscious. So -nyaaa-!!" Pausing in his quest for Genma's breakfast, he pulled down an eyelid and stuck out his tongue.  
  
Genma sighed in relief when Ranma finished his breakfast AND Genma's, and rose from the table, "So, you ready to go training, Akane?"  
  
Trying not to appear too eager, the black-haired girl nodded, "Uh-huh! Just let me go get changed!"  
  
Ranma's face lost it's cheerful smirk, "Into -what-, dare I ask??"  
  
Akane paused and looked back at the red-haired boy, "Into my Gi, of course!!"  
  
Ranma sighed and smacked his face with a palm, "Akane."  
  
She stopped at the bottom of the stairs and cocked her head toward him. He looked up at her and said, "For one thing, I don't know what your previous Sensei told you, but in MY case, -everything- is training. You train ALL the time, so unless you wanna wear one ALL the time, you don't wear a Gi, alright?? And for another, we'll be going out in public, and I don't think you wanna be seen like that. Try something like your jogging outfit for now, and we'll see what your wardrobe looks like later."  
  
Akane nodded grudgingly and moved up the stairs with a little less bounce in her step than before.  
  
------{ Juuban, Usagi's House }------  
  
"Hi guys! Is everyone here? What are we doing today? Oooo look at that! Did you bring lunch for all of us Mako-chan? Hey, where's Mamoru? I though he was going to pay for our ice cream!" Usagi opened the door to greet her friends, bouncing around like her namesake on caffeine. Although in -her- case it was most likely a sugar high.  
  
Ami adjusted her reading glasses, "Well, the first thing we had in mind was to try and find that guy we ran into yesterday, then we-" She stopped short as Usagi immediately pulled out the most devastating technique of all time. The dreaded "Wet Puppy, Tearful Eyes". She sighed and continued, "But maybe we can stop for some ice-cream first."  
  
"Yay!! Ice cream! Oh, look! There's Mamo-chan!" Usagi bounced even -more- rapidly, waving her arms to get the dark-haired boy's attention, "Mamo-chan!! Mamo-chan! Guess what? We're going for ice cream!"  
  
Mamoru was suddenly struck with the urge to start walking in the opposite direction. Very fast. Every single time they went for ice cream, he paid for it. Dearly. Who knows -what- it would be like with the other Senshi along!  
  
The other girls just sighed and gazed at him pityingly.  
  
------{ End Episode 05 }------  
  
Whee!! Finally done!!! Okay, first of all, I apologize for bringing more Original Characters into the mix. I don't particularly care for it when other writers do it (unless they do it WELL, which is rare), and I didn't originally plan it this way, but I really needed something to fill in for the "Dr. Tofu Arc". I had something planned to replace it, but I didn't think it would take up all of both episodes, so this is the result. (Not to worry! It DID have SOME purpose other than filler space...) Oh well, at least it had more action.* (In fact, this is my longest "fight scene" yet! I mean, FOUR PAGES?!?!) Don't worry, I have NO intention of making the Gaians regulars. In fact, if you're lucky, they won't ever show up again! Except for one, but "That... is a secret!" (TM)  
  
OH!!! I almost forgot!! Here's another Aura Guide, but this one's the Elemental colors (which take precedence over normal emotional auras):  
  
Lightning: Pale Blue/Purple when aroused (angry, exited, depressed, etc.)  
  
Fire: Gold/Red  
  
Earth: Tan/Brown  
  
Water: Teal/Blue  
  
Air: White/Gray  
  
Spirit: Light/Dark Green  
  
Thank you very much for the Reviews, people!! I enjoy them all! Even the flames! No, wait. I haven't GOTTEN any Flames!! Well, I guess I must be doing something right. (I bet I just jinxed myself...) Surprisingly, I haven't gotten any questions, either, so I'm either covering all the bases, or people just aren't interested. (I hope it's the former.) So, thanks again and keep 'em coming!!  
  
* Speaking of action, am I doing a good job with that? I intend to describe the action in such a way that the reader can visualize what I'm talking about, but I'm not sure I've "got the touch". So let me know!  
  
Hello?  
  
Anyone out there?  
  
Anybody?  
  
*sighs* 


	6. Episode 06: Tough Training! Ranma is a T...

Intro: HA!!! Thought I was dead, didn't you?! Well, I'm alive and kicking with another chapter of Chaos OneHalf for ya. I hope the rest of the story doesn't go this slow...  
  
Warnings: Some manga language. Unedited.  
  
------------{ Chaos 1/2 }-------------  
  
------{ Episode 06: Tough Training! Ranma is a Teacher? }------  
  
Akane bounced down the stairs, dressed in a modified version of her jogging outfit, with a pair of sweat-pants over her shorts and a jacket over her tank-top. "Okay, I'm ready, Sensei!"  
  
Ranma paused in his bouncing on one foot and gave her a once-over. He nodded, "Good enough. Let's go." He resumed bouncing and moved out through the door.   
  
Akane followed him, watching him strangely, "-What- are you -doing-??"  
  
He smirked and turned around, still bouncing, "Training. It helps my stance, and my jump height. See?" He took his hands out of his pockets to reveal a black sphere in each hand. He held it out for Akane to look at, and she leaned forward.  
  
Slowly she made out the letters engraved on the surface of the sphere, "1-0-0-l-b..." Her eyes bugged out and she teetered forward, resisting the urge to face-fault, "100 pounds?!! Where did you pick something like that up??!"  
  
Ranma shrugged, "I dunno, ask Pops. He's the one that comes up with all this weird stuff." He reached into a backpack resting by the gate and pulled out a vest, a pair of bracelets, and a pair of anklets, "Meanwhile, here's a little somethin' for ya."  
  
Akane looked at him questioningly and he nodded, "Go 'head, put 'em on."  
  
She nodded and moved to pick the items up, only to grunt in exertion attempting to pick the vest up. She looked at him incredulously, "-What- is this stuff -made- of?!"  
  
Ranma smirked, "Don't ask. Just put it on."  
  
Once Akane had finished putting on the accessories, she was breathing heavily, " Oooof! This is HEAVY!! How long do you want me to wear this anyway?"  
  
" 'Till you get used to it, then we add more weight. Now come on, let's go." He waved for her to follow him, then set off at a brisk pace. Akane stared after him for a moment, then hurried to catch up.  
  
------{ Streets of Juuban }------  
  
"And just how do you expect to be able to locate this guy anyway?! We know nothing about him!!" Exclaimed Sailor Mars irritably.  
  
Sailor Mercury glanced up from her computer, "Well, I was going to scan for his energy signature, but he doesn't seem to be anywhere in sight. It's almost as if- " She paused as her computer beeped urgently, then sighed, "Scratch that, we've got a youma to fight." She pointed, and the group was about to head off when a flash of light followed by a roll of thunder and a roar of pain caught their attention. They all glanced up at the clear sky, then at each other, and nodded, "Let's hurry!"  
  
They all arrived on the scene to see Ranma finishing off another of the Black Rainbow monsters with a kick to the back of it's neck. They all winced at the viciousness displayed by his actions. They were about to drop down from the roof they were watching him from when he dusted off his hands and turned to his companion, a girl with long, dark-blue hair wearing an exercise outfit and a vest.  
  
"See? They're pathetic wimps, Akane."  
  
She frowned at him, "I still think you should leave this sort of thing to the Sailor Senshi."  
  
The red-haired boy just shook his head and laughed, "What? Are you kidding?! They had more trouble with it than -I- did! In fact, they were getting their asses kicked!"  
  
"HEY!!!"  
  
Ranma looked up at the roof, where Sailor Mars was looking down at him indignantly, and shrugged helplessly, "Well, you WERE! Hi, girls! Ready for Round Two??"  
  
Sailor Moon pushed her way forward and held out her hands placatingly, "Wait a minute! We don't want to fight you! We just want to talk!"  
  
"Who says??" muttered Mars under her breath.  
  
Ranma simply smirked, "Well, too bad! -I- wanna fight!!" With that, he leapt toward them, falling far short of the tall building, but jumping off of the wall to the opposite building, where he triangle-jumped again until he reached the top. He took up a battle stance, "Are you ready??"  
  
Not waiting for an answer, he jumped high into the air and landed directly in front of Sailor Moon, only to sweep her feet out from under her. She shrieked in surprise as she fell, flailing her arms wildly. Ranma was already in the air once more, heading for Sailor Mercury. The blue-skirted girl reacted quickly, raising her hands and summoning a thick fog to blind the red-haired martial artist. Ranma immediately stopped where he was, then began moving again, this time staying as quiet as possible.  
  
Suddenly his danger sense screamed at him and he leapt upward desparately, just in time to avoid a screeching bird of flame as it flew straight at him. He emerged from the fog like a rocket, noting the position of the other Senshi as he rose. They noticed him at about the same time, and Venus fired a Crescent Beam at him as he reached the peak of his jump, forcing him to twist awkardly to avoid it.  
  
He twisted and flipped as he came down, somehow landing on his feet in the middle of the fog. Not pausing, he leapt sideways toward Sailor Jupiter, who blocked his first kick with her own leg, then grabbed his second kick out of the air. But before she could throw him, Ranma had jumped and kicked with his other leg, hitting her on the side of her head and stunning her. As her grip loosened, he pulled his first leg out and finished the spin, landing on his feet once more.  
  
Instead of finishing her off, he jumped for Sailor Mars, who swiftly made some symbols in the air and fired a Burning Mandala at him. Ranma shifted in mid-air, diving straight through the center of the attack and knocking Mars off of her feet with a powerful kick to her torso.  
  
Using the momentum provided by the kick, he headed for Sailor Moon again, this time grabbing her arm and swinging around her body, thus changing the direction of his leap, and at the same time pulling her off balance again. This time he headed for Sailor Venus and touched down just before reaching her, but kept going, leg extended in a sliding kick. She also shrieked as she flipped into the air and landed on her back, the breath knocked from her lungs.   
  
By this time Mercury had dissipated the fog, and she fired a Shabon Spray Freezing at the red-haired boy as he headed for her once more. Surprised, he dove to the side and rolled, coming to a stop only inches from the edge of the roof. His danger sense screamed again as Sailor Jupiter dove at him with a jump kick, and he rolled to the side, only to snag her arm as she flew over the edge, causing her to slam to the the side of the building.  
  
Not wasting any time, he pulled her up and jumped at Mars, leaving Jupiter gasping for breath and wondering at his actions. Mars fired another Fire Soul Bird at him, which he flipped over. He landed in front of the red-skirted girl, and snapped five kicks in succession into her torso, breaking through her hastily raised guard.  
  
Still moving almost to fast for the Senshi to react, he jumped at Sailor Moon again and landed directly in front of her. Straightening, he put his hands to the sides of his head and made a face, "BOO!!!" Startled, she jumped back, tripping over her own feet and landing on her butt.   
  
Ranma finally stopped and straightened, chuckling, "Heheh... Seriously though, you guys need some serious training before you can take on those monsters. You've got the speed and the power, but the skills aren't there." He turned to face Mercury, "By the way, g-" He was interrupted by Jupiter's Sparkling Wide Pressure hitting his unguarded back. His only reaction was to shake his head as if dizzy and glare at Sailor Jupiter, "HEY! That was uncalled for!!"  
  
The Senshi all stared at him in surprise as he raised a finger and summoned a small ball of lightning, "Well, it's not like it matters since I can't be hurt by my Element, but the question is, can you??" That said, he pointed at Jupiter and fired the lightning bolt. Too stunned to dodge it, she twitched spasmodically as the mild shock connected. Ranma smirked, "Well, I guess that answers THAT question." He then turned back to Mercury, "By the way, nice defenses."  
  
Having said his piece, he waved good-bye before leaping high into the air, "I'll see ya around girls. Flash Point!!!" A bright bolt of lightning slammed into their midst, blinding the Senshi long enough for Ranma to make his escape. By the time they had recovered, both the red-haired boy and the dark-haired girl were gone.  
  
The Senshi looked back and forth at each other for several seconds before anyone said anything. Sailor Mars finally broke the silence, "Well, that settles it. -I- say he's a Youma."  
  
Sailor Mercury shook her head, "While I'd normally be inclined to agree with you, the Mercury computer indicates that there was no change in his Bio-energy readings during the fight, except for raising in power level while he was active. It went back down after he stopped fighting. Which is perfectly normal, except for the high level it reached."  
  
"Alright, so he's got a powerful Ki. What about that Lightning he summoned? Doesn't that count as a Youma ability?!"  
  
"The Mercury computer did not indicate anything other than a slight drop in Bio-energy levels when he created that electricity. The strange part is that there didn't seem to be any Magic involved, even though he does have a rather strange magical aura..."  
  
"What do you mean by that?" Sailor Venus piped up.  
  
"Well, he appears to be under some sort of curse, but that's not the strange part. It's almost as if there are two souls in one body. Which, as you know, is impossible." Sailor Mercury tilted her head quizzically, "Although it -would- explain his abnormally high Bio-enegy level."  
  
Sailor Moon broke in, her calmness indicating that her Queen Serenity persona had come to the fore-front, "Perhaps he was reincarnated like us, but something went wrong? Still, none of us were severely hurt. It's almost as if he was testing us."  
  
Sailor Jupiter joined in, still involuntarily twitching every once in a while, "He DID save me from going over the roof back there.... for what it's worth. Then again, he did hit me with a lightning bolt..."  
  
Sailor Venus asked the question they'd all been thinking, "So... is he a friend or an enemy??"  
  
They all looked at each other again, before Sailor Mercury closed the Mercury computer and said, "Perhaps this will best be discussed over ice cream?"  
  
"Yay!!! Ice cream!!!" Obviously, Usagi was back to her usual self.  
  
------{ Ice Cream Shop, Juuban }------  
  
"Okay, how did you and Kasumi get here again??"  
  
"Well, Ranma, I saw the live television broadcast of your fight with that Youma and came to check it out."  
  
"Ara, Ara. I was just looking for an especially rare ingredient for tonight's supper."  
  
"Uh-huh... Well, while we're all here, why don't you all have some ice cream, my treat!"  
  
Nabiki eyed the red-haired boy suspiciously, "ALL of us, Ranma? You'll pardon my skepticism, but you don't strike me as the type to have a lot of money."  
  
Ranma smirked knowingly, "Don't look a gift horse in the mouth, eh Nabiki?" The short-haired girl narrowed her eyes at him and crossed her arms. "Eh... trust me, you don't want to know..." She continued staring at him. "Uh..." He finally wilted, "Look, I went back and mugged those muggers from last night, okay?!"  
  
Akane face-faulted while Nabiki simply slapped her face with a palm. Kasumi... The corner of Kasumi's lips twitched, "Ara, ara. That wasn't a very nice thing to do, Ranma-kun." Another twitch.  
  
Ranma scratched the back of his neck sheepishly, "Ah... heh heh... Um, are you guys gonna order or not?"  
  
Nabiki promptly ordered the most expensive thing on the menu, while Akane stuck with a Sundae. Kasumi hung back, looking longingly at the menu. Ranma immediately noticed this and spoke up, "What's the matter, Kasumi? Aren't ya gonna to get somethin'?"  
  
The mild-mannered girl looked back at him with a vaguely concerned expression on her face, "Ara ara... It's been so long... I don't think I should-"  
  
"What are you talkin' about? Just pick somethin' an' enjoy it!" He gestured at the menu to emphasise.   
  
"Oh, um... If you insist..."   
  
A short time later, they were all enjoying their respective deserts when a group of girls walked in, chatting amongst themselves. None of Ranma's group took any notice of the other group until they sat down at their table and the girl with brown hair in a tall ponytail said, "I still can't believe he hit me with a lightning bolt!! I mean, how did he DO that?"  
  
"SNORT!!! COUGH-COUGH-HACK-COUGH!!!"  
  
Kasumi looked up from her chocolate-fudge-dipped-in-chocolate-syrup-and-sprinkled-with-chocolate-chips dish in concern, "Ara ara, are you all right Ranma-kun??"  
  
The pony-tailed boy held up a hand, "Just- wheeze fine, Kasumi... cough"   
  
After he had recovered from his coughing fit, Ranma continued to nurse at his chocolate cone (sans fudge, syrup, and chocolate chips)while listening carefully to the conversation across the room. The short haired one with blue hair was the next to speak, "To tell you the truth, Makoto, I don't know. All I can say for sure is that it wasn't magic he was using."  
  
The long-haired girl with black hair spoke up next, "He may have been using his Ki, but I've never heard of -anyone- using their Ki like that."  
  
The blond with twin odangos stopped stuffing herself long enough to say, "We STILL don't know if he's a friend or an enemy. After all, he did say when we first met him that Setsuna told him to help us. But on the other hand, he doesn't seem very inclined to listen to her."  
  
After Ranma had realised who they were referring to, he had switched over to his Ki-senses to identify the girls. It took some examining to tell, but their auras seemed to be the same as the Sailor Senshi, only less powerful. A plan formed in his mind while he finished off his cone, then crossed the room to introduce himself, "Uh, excuse me? I thought I heard you say someone was supposed to be training you and backed out?"  
  
As one the girls all froze and stared at him.  
  
No one moved.  
  
All was silent.  
  
Ranma was sweating bullets.  
  
Ami finally broke the ice, "Um... I'm sorry. Do we know you??"  
  
Ranma nearly wiped his forehead in relief, [Whew! They didn't attack! Must be some sort of transformation, then.] "No, I don't think so. But it sounds like you're having trouble with bullies??"  
  
Makoto sweatdropped, "Uh, yeah. You could say that..."  
  
He grinned "Ah, then I know just the thing! You girls need some lessons in self defense!"  
  
Makoto began to protest, "But I already-"  
  
She was interrupted by Ami's hand on her arm, "Wait a moment, Makoto. This may be just what we need." Ami's eyes bore into Makoto's, driving her intentions home. If they could gain training from the very opponent they were fighting, they would have a much easier time defeating him. He would be the device of his own defeat!  
  
"...Oh. Uh, yeah... Maybe that would be a good idea..." The brunette finished feebly. The rest of the girls all looked at Usagi, waiting for her permission. The blond-haired girl finally swallowed the mouthfull of ice cream she had been holding since Ranma had stepped up and nodded.  
  
They turned back to Ranma and Ami spoke again, "That sounds like a great idea... Um...." She trailed off, reallizing that they had yet to get his name.  
  
The pony-tailed boy swept into a loose western bow, "Ranma Saotome, at your service."  
  
Ami returned his bow from her seat, "Well, then. Take care of us, Sensei."  
  
Ranma gestured at Akane, "You'll be training alongside Akane Tendo, here." He raised his voice slightly, "Hey, Akane! Come here and meet your new training partners!"  
  
The dark-haired girl scowled at him, "What's the big idea, Ranma?! Don't have enough pretty girls around, NOW??!"  
  
Ranma looked taken aback for a second, then replied, mimicking her scowl, "What's the big idea, Akane?! Don't have enough honor to help someone in NEED??!"  
  
Akane was the one taken aback this time, "What??! Don't you dare bring honor into this!! You're just trying to pick up girls!! You're just a pervert like the rest of them!!"  
  
Pale blue eyes narrowed, "Take off those weights, Akane."  
  
-That- got through to her, "W-what??!"  
  
"You heard me." An icey face matched his tone perfectly. "If you act like that, you're not fit to train with me."  
  
Her offense was really faltering, now, "But.. you-"  
  
"But -nothing-, Akane. You had no right to protest my right to take on new students." He informed her calmly. "Now take off those weights."  
  
She looked back and forth between him and the weights several times before she responded, "Fine. If you wanna be a pervert, do it when I'm not around." She removed the straps and the vest, letting them fall to the floor with a thump. She stretched, then said stiffly, "I'm going home." With that she stalked out the door, ignoring her unfinished Sundae.  
  
Ranma watched her leave, icey expression still in place. Once the door closed, his entire body relaxed and he sighed heavily, "Damn. I thought she was ready... Guess I was wrong..." Putting it behind him for time being, he turned back to the group of girls, "Sorry about that... Listen, is there a park or something nearby where we can meet?"  
  
Rei nodded slowly, "There's a park not too far from here, maybe seven or eight blocks."  
  
"Great!! I'll meet you there after school tomorrow, then. Is that all right with you?" He looked at all of them in turn, and they nodded.  
  
"That would be fine." Ami spoke for all of them once again.  
  
"Alright, then. I'll just leave you girls to finish your ice cream, then. I'll see you tomorrow." With that, he turned and went back to his table, where Nabiki and Kasumi were just finishing off their respective dishes. "You guys ready to go?" After getting an affirmative, the small group left, hoping to catch up to Akane.  
  
------{ The Next Afternoon, Juuban Park }------  
  
"Okay, girls. The first thing you will do is put on these weights." Ranma held up several sets of weights identical to the ones Akane had shunned yesterday, "You will wear these at ALL TIMES, even while you're not training with me. You may take them off for showers or baths, but that's it."  
  
Minako raised her hand enthusiastically, "But what if we get into a real fight??"  
  
Ranma leveled a stare at all of them. "YOU... won't be GETTING into any fights," he stated firmly.  
  
"But-" Ranma cut her off by raising a hand warningly.  
  
"NO... FIGHTS.... Now put them on and we can get to the training." He smirked maliciously. The girls suddenly felt a shiver run up their spines.  
  
Once the girls were "dressed", Ranma studied them for a moment and nodded, "Right. Now, training will consist of you trying to hit me and me trying to hit you. In other other words, we spar." He looked them over again and pointed at Makoto, "You. you're first."   
  
Needless to say, the fight didn't last very long. A battered and bruised Makoto staggered back to the others and flopped to the ground, "You know, I never thought that training could be this painful..." Usagi started to say something, but was distracted by Ranma, who was pointing at Rei.  
  
"You! You're up next!" Rei winced and slowly went to put her head on the chopping block- I mean, spar with Ranma.  
  
The rest of the training went very similar, with one of the girls trying to hit Ranma while he pointed out holes in their defense and took advantage of those same holes at the same time. Many of the moves he used on them were examples that he showed them how to do later.  
  
At one point, Usagi managed to tag him completely by accident, but tripped over her own feet as she danced a little victory dance. After sitting up, she started to cry, "Whaaaa!!! I'll never get it straight!! I'm so clumsy!!!" She sniffed sadly.  
  
Ranma walked over to her, "Hey, Meatballs. How old are you?"  
  
She looked up at him sharply, clumsiness forgotten for the moment, "What?! How dare you call me Meatballs!! And why should I tell you how old I am?? Don't you know that you're not supposed to ask a woman her age??!"  
  
Ranma shrugged carelessly, "Sheesh! Touchy, touchy. Just answer the question. Meatballs."  
  
"For your information, I'm fourteen. Not that's it's any of your business," she finished huffily.  
  
Ranma nodded thoughtfully, "Mmmm-hmmm. I thought so."  
  
All of the girls looked at him curiously. He looked around at them and grinned, then turned back to Usagi, "The reason you're so clumsy is because you're having a growth spurt. You'll grow out of it soon enough. It's perfectly normal."  
  
"Aaahhhhhhh..." A collective sound of understanding passed over the girls, followed by, "Why didn't -I- think of that?!!"  
  
------{ Juuban, Downtown Mall }------  
  
Later that week, Ranma finally found another of the Ebony Monsters. This time he noticed that he had had a more difficult time killing it than he had the other Monsters. He sported a cut on one cheek, and a couple bruises on his arms before he managed to kill it. The resulting black ooze had just evaporated when an indignant cry from a nearby rooftop alerted him to the presence of the Sailor Senshi.  
  
"Hey! No fair!! You got to it before we did!" Sailor Moon's voice whined.  
  
Ranma looked up at the ensemble of girls above him and grinned, "What, were you LOOKING for a beating?? Well, you missed the monster, but -I'll- be happy to oblige!!" He tensed and leapt for the rooftop, using a couple less triangle-jumps than the last time.  
  
Sailor Moon waved her arms defensively, "W-w-wait!!! Aren't you supposed to be HELPING us?!! I thought you said Pluto told you to help us!!"  
  
Ranma shrugged as he landed, "Yeah, but you wimps are beyond help. There's no way you could get good enough to beat that thing in time." He hadn't actually found out -when- the Entity would arrive, but the Senshi didn't need to know that.  
  
"Y-you mean you know when that thing will get here??!" Sailor Mars gasped, horrified.  
  
He smirked suddenly, "Yeah, but that's..." He trailed off.  
  
Sailor Venus rose to the bait, "That's what?"  
  
Ranma winked and waved a finger at them, "... A secret!" The Senshi did a group facefault.  
  
Ranma chuckled to himself as they recovered, "Heh, heh!! Well, looks like Round Three to me. Let's go!"  
  
------{ End Episode 06 }------  
  
Next episode: So Ryouga, how's your training goin'? ...... You got knocked into a spring?! ...... Which one? ...... You can do WHAT now?!!  
  
Author's Notes: Whew! Took me long enough, but I got it out. Introduced some plot twists here. Akane quits (not necessarily permanently), the Senshi start training, and the monsters are getting tougher. I don't really count the ending as a cliffhanger, since the outcome of the fight is pretty much predetermined anyway. Heh. Points go to anyone who correctly guesses which spring Ryouga is gonna fall into.  
  
Ah yes. As I type this out ( -/-/-), Finishing Moves Chapter 2B is about halfway done, but don't expect an update for another month or so. My output speed has slowed down drastically. For that matter, don't expect the next chapter of Chaos OneHalf for several months, at least. On the other hand, I may finish that one sooner simply because I'm finally where I can start lining MY story up with the TV storyline again. BTW, I only intend to stick with it until the end of the first season, then I'll take whatever direction I want to after that. 


	7. Episode 07: Enter Ryouga! Opposites Meet...

Intro: I finally got it out! Yay! Anyways, here is the long awaited Chapter 07. Enjoy! Ah yes, Finishing Moves 2B is also almost done. Expect that to be out in another few weeks.  
  
Warnings: Manga Language, Manga violence, Unedited  
  
------------ Chaos 1/2 ------------  
  
------ Episode 07: Enter Ryouga! Opposites Meet Again! ------  
  
A familiar scene fades in as we begin our episode. A lone traveler slowly walks through a a windy, barren desert. This is where the resemblence ends, however. THIS traveler is not hunched over, with a cloak pulled about him to avoid the sting of the wind-blown sands on his body. THIS traveler does not wear goggles to cover his eyes so as to protect them from sand. This traveler walks proudly along, his head held high, seemingly un-heeding of the winds and the sands blowing around him.  
  
This traveler does not wear a cloak because he does not NEED one. The wind is blowing the sand, true. But the sand does not reach him, for an invisible shield seems the stop all of the tiny stones mere inches away from his body. The traveler walks inexolerably onward, his head held high as the wind attempts to blow him over. He is unaffected by the wind, and the sand that it carries never reaches him. He is like a rock. No, he is like a cliff. He will not bow the the wind. The wind will bow to him. Just like the earth bows to his beck and call.  
  
Indeed, the traveler continues onward, unheeding of the wind and unheeding of the sands around him. His feet leave no mark on the malleable sand. Just as the sand makes no mark on him.  
  
------ Somewhere in the Country-sides of Japan ------  
  
The traveler has come to the end of the desert. He now stands at the top of a cliff. He gazes down impassively at the town below, taking in the scenery for a moment before he sheathes the umbrella he has been using to block the sun on top of his back-pack. With a shrug of his giant shoulders he leaps of the cliff. The umbrella stays attached the the top of his large pack.  
  
The very ground shakes for a moment when the traveler lands at the bottom of the cliff. He slowly rises from his crouch and continues walking, unaffected by the long drop. He finds a nearby road and follows it, keeping the same slow-but-sure pace that he had been keeping through the desert. A pair of small craters at the bottom of the cliff are the only sign of his passing.  
  
------ In a Nearby Village ------  
  
"It's coming! It's coming!!" A loud squeal accompanied the shout as a young man ran desparately for the warning bell. The huge boar squealed again as it ran aimlessly through the village, leaving a swathe of destruction in it's wake. People screamed in fright as it plowed straight through their stands and burst roughly through their homes.  
  
Except for one elderly couple who merely blinked in surprise as their dining table suddenly went missing.  
  
The young man finally reached the warning bell and began to frantically pound on it with the nearby gong hammer. The boar continued it's aimless path of destruction as more people heard the bell and began to clear the streets. The young man suddenly stopped his pounding and gaped at a tall man that he hadn't noticed before slowly walking down the street.  
  
"H-hey!! Look out!!!" He shouted at the man, who didn't seem to hear him. "D'ja hear me?! I said, LOOK OUT!!!" His vioce raised even more as he noticed that the boar had stopped its aimless destruction and was now heading straight for the stranger. The boar reached the stranger.  
  
The young man dropped the hammer and flung an arm over his eyes. He couldn't bear to see the poor guy die like that. It would be bad enough to hear the screams of pain. Then he noticed that there was something wrong. There didn't seem to be any screams of pain. In fact, there didn't seem to be any sounds at all, even thought the streets had been filled with cries of panic just a moment ago. It was just as well. The poor guy probably didn't even know what had hit him. He probably hadn't even had time to scream. Another moment passed by before the young man dared to lower his arm and look at the carnage wrought by-  
  
Uh, that couldn't be right. He raised his arm again, only to rub at his eyes disblievingly. No, the hallucination was still there. He stared, speechless at the sight before him.  
  
The stranger continued slowly on his path, while the wild boar... The wild boar lay unconscious in a crater of it's own making in the middle of the road, a large welt rising on it's head. The tall man paid no attention the the gasps of amazement and wonder as he deliberately continued his wandering.  
  
For the benefit of the reader, I will now explain what exactly happened in those few seconds that the young man had covered his eyes. It was very simple really. In the first second, the tall boy turned around and bopped the boar on the head. In the next second, he had turned back to his path and continued on his way. The rest were spent placing one foot in front of the other. Yes, that was it. Now you can understand why the young man was having trouble believing his eyes.  
  
------ Nerima, Tendo Compound ------  
  
Ranma ran through katas in, on, and over the back yard. His body moved at a furious pace as he blurred through one kata and moved on to the next. A quiet rumbling sound accompanied his workout. A rumbling caused by his body consistently breaking the sound barrier.  
  
Kasumi smiled serenely as the wind generated by his movement billowed the clothes that she was hanging up on the clothesline. Nabiki glanced at him in annoyance as the wind blew over several pages of the manga she was currently reading. Akane sat on the back porch and watched him as well as she could with an unhappy expression on her face. Soun and Genma both took a glance at the blur of movement the the back yard before returning to their game of Shogi.  
  
Abruptly, Ranma slowed down. He continued doing katas, but he seemed to have changed styles now. Where before, he had moved as fast as he could, with no finesse at all, now he simply moving quickly and with as much grace and agility as he could muster.  
  
Kasumi paused in the middle of hanging up a sheet to watch the red-haired boy dance. Nabiki glanced at him again. And continued to stare. Akane smiled to herself as she watched him flow across the yard, her troubles forgotten for the moment. Even Genma and Soun stared a moment longer than they had intended. Then they went back to their game.  
  
Eventually Nabiki found herself fanning her face as she watched the pony-tailed boy flow through his katas. The realization of what she was doing puzzled her. She didn't think that the forecast had mentioned anything about a heat wave. If she recalled correctly it was only supposed to get around seventy degrees today. So why did it feel like it was going on a hundred??  
  
She glanced toward Ranma again. This time she noticed that the air around him seemed to shimmer, just like it did over hot asphalt... Her eyes widened as she realized the RANMA must be generating the heat she was feeling. She continued to watch him more closely. The red-haired boy's eyes were closed in concentration as he gracefully flickered about the yard, and if she looked very carefully, he was also glowing slightly. She noticed that even though he was generating a fair amount of heat, he didn't seem to be the least bit warm.  
  
Then he stopped. He held his last pose for a moment and opened his eyes- Whooof!! He gasped sharply as the heat wave struck him like a solid object. Beads of sweat broke out on his face as he fanned himself rapidly. "Woah!" he breathed faintly. "Guess that means I'm on the right track, then..."  
  
------ Elsewhere ------  
  
The tall traveler finally paused in his relentless journey. He stood in a large hilly area, surrounded by mountains on one side and a forest on the other. In front of him stood a farmer in over-alls and his cow. "This he-ah ain't To-kee-oo, Bo-ey." the farmer drawled, handing back the map the traveler had given him.  
  
"What??!" the tall boy screamed. "What do you MEAN 'This ain't Tokyo'?!! If this ain't Tokyo, then WHERE THE HELL AM I?!?" He glared angrily at the farmer, clenching his fists tightly.  
  
Then he let out a sigh (as did the relieved farmer) and unclenched his fists, letting his anger drain away. He gave another depressed sigh, "Let me guess: Hokaido." The farmer nodded uneasily. The tall boy sighed again, this time resignedly, and turned to continue on his journey, "Thanks for your help..."  
  
A short while later found him asking for directions from another farmer, "If y'all want ta git ta To-kee-oo, y'all jes' gotta go stee-rate down that thar road. Yep, stee-rate as th' crow flies. Yessir."  
  
"Thanks a lot!" The tall boy waved thankfully to the farmer and headed down the road at a ground-eating jog. "Damn this sense of direction! I can't ever seem to get where I'm going! Why?? WHY does it still plague me?!? Damn it, Randy! This is all your fault!! When I get my hands on you, I'm gonna- Huh?" He stared ahead of him in confusion.  
  
Ahead, the road veered off to the right and the forest that had been at his side this whole time suddenly cut in front of him. Which way? Which way?? Well, he said straight as the crow flies, so... "Straight it is!" With that, he plowed straight through the guard rail and jumped down the incline into the forest.  
  
"I'm almost there! Just gotta keep going straight!" He glared at an upcoming tree, "I'm gonna go straight and there ain't NOTHING gonna stop me!!!" He ran straight at the tree and punched it. A loud crack echoed through the forest and the tree fell over noisily, it's trunk snapped in two by the force of the punch. The tall boy continued his ground-eating jog, never stopping. Even for a tree.  
  
His run continued into the night, and all of the animals were kept awake by the disturbing sounds of trees giving way to the unstoppable force of destruction as he made his way through the forest. It was the next evening by the time he finally emerged on the other side of the forest, breathing heavily from his extertion, and exhausted from his day-long run. He stood there, panting for a moment. Then he took a look at his surroundings. They were green. They were mountainous. They were unfamiliar. But most importantly, they were NOT Tokyo!  
  
"DAMN IT!!!" he screamed, slamming a fist into the ground. A five foot crater appeared at his feet and the ground shook with a small tremor. I KNEW I should have taken that road!! I just KNEW it!!! He turned and headed back into the forest, stumbling a little as he went. "Damn it! Just you wait, Ranma!!"  
  
------ Nerima, Tendo Compound ------  
  
"Just you wait, Ranma!!!"  
  
Soun made another move with his pieces, just as Ranma flew by the door. This was not as disturbing as the sight of Akane stumbling past them, her clothes nearly obscured by an assortment of weights. This was STILL not as disturbing as the sight of Nabiki following both of them, clutching her ribs in laughter. Genma paused in mid-move to stare. He was accompanied by Soun.  
  
"You get back here!!"  
  
A short moment later, Ranma flew by again, wearing a large smirk and doing a pirouette in mid-air. This was not particularly disturbing, but the sight of Akane stumbling by again, nearly incapitated with more weights, was. As was Nabiki stumbling by again, nearly incapitated with laughter. Genma and Soun, still frozen in mid-move, followed their movements with wide eyes.  
  
"I'll get you for this, Ranma!"  
  
Just as they were about to go back to their game, Ranma flew by again, this time stopping to stick out his rear derisively and smack it a few times. He disappeared, but Akane stumbled into view and collapsed face down on the porch, immobilized by even MORE weights. Nabiki followed once more, and had to lean against the wall of the house to support herself. Ranma appeared once more, a large smirk still present on his face.  
  
He knelt in front of Akane's prone body, "Hey, you wanted training, I'm giving it to you! Stop complaining. I just had to find your limit. Now I'll take some of these weights off ya." He reached down and unfastened a few of the weights.  
  
Akane suddenly swiped at him angrily, but missed as the red-haired boy casually moved out of the way. "Whoop! You're gonna have ta do better than that if ya wanna hit me, Akane. I didn't say I'd take all of 'em off, anyway. Just some of 'em."  
  
Akane growled and lurched to her feet, taking another swipe at the pony-tailed boy. He dodged again and moved on down the porch, out of sight. Akane followed slowly, still stumbling under the weights. Nabiki recovered herself somewhat, and followed the two, still giggling at her younger sister's antics.  
  
Genma and Soun sat frozen for moment longer, but no more surprises made themselves known. Finally Genma shivered and held up a sign, Almost as bad as the Master, I tell ya! Soun nodded in agreement.  
  
------ Somewhere in Hokaido ------  
  
The setting sun cast a long shadow on the dirt road leading into a small village. A tall figure cast an even longer shadow as he stumbled into the town. He had been running for nearly three day straight now and he was beginning to get a little tired. Just a little, mind you.  
  
He paused next to an important looking building from which voices wafted through the air and looked around the mostly deserted town. A few buildings looked like they had been through a battle or something, but he paid it no mind. He turned toward the building where the voices were coming from, "Maybe I'd... better ask for... directions..." He slammed the door open and yelled, "WHERE IS FURINKAN HIGH SCHOOL??!"  
  
There was complete and total silence as he slowly scanned from left to right to left again. There were the townspeople from the town in which he had beaten the boar into the road three days ago. There the boar which he had beaten into the road three days ago. And they were all staring at him in surprise. And, much to his embarrassment, recognition. Finally one of them spoke up; the young man who had tried to warn him of the boar, "Well, howdy thar. We didn't know y'all wuz still he-ah!"  
  
The tall boy tried desparately to keep the flush of mortification off of his face as he slowly closed the door, "Sorry... to bother you." He was mostly successful.  
  
The townspeople continued to stare at the closed door for a moment. Then an older villager voiced the thought they were all thinking, "Ah hev a feelin' he'll be back agin'. The rest of them nodded solemnly.  
  
The moon rose into the night sky, perfectly defining the silhouette of a tall boy as he ran over the ridge of a hill. Damn it all! Seems like I've been traveling forever! WHY can't I make it to Tokyo??! WHY?!! Ranma Saotome!! I will NEVER allow you to escape!!!  
  
The tall figure headed into another forest. Or maybe it was the same one, he didn't really care. The sounds of mindless destruction began once more. Then a shout echoed the the increasingly empty woods, "Just you wait, Randy!!"  
  
------ Furinkan High School ------  
  
"Just you wait, Ranma!!"  
  
The crowd of students heading for the exit heeded their senses of self-preservation and moved aside for a chuckling Ranma and his angry fiance. Especially since said fiance was wearing several sets of weights and appeared to be glowing.  
  
------ Outside ------  
  
The tall boy maintained his deliberate pace as he walked past the walls of a school of some sort. Then he noticed the crowd of students making their way out of the gates. He paused beside them and looked at the school itself, Maybe I should find out where I am... He waited until a random boy had gotten close enough and snagged him as he walked by. He hauled the poor guy up by his shirt collar and shouted in his face, "WHERE IS FURINKAN HIGH SCHOOL?!?"  
  
The student tried to make sense of what he had just been asked. Not only was he nearly deaf from being shouted at, it was also hard to think when your feet are dangling in mid-air. Because a seven foot giant who looked like he could squash you with his pinkie finger has you by your shirt collar. And he looked like he was about to squash you because you weren't answering fast enough.  
  
"Huh?" he answered intelligently.  
  
The giant glared at him and repeated his question in a slightly louder voice. Which was amazing, because the student hadn't though that anybody could yell that loud the FIRST time around. Oh boy, he REALLY looked like he was about to squash somebody now! What was the question again?? Oh yeah. Furinkan High School. He knew he'd heard the name before but he just couldn't place it. Furinkan. Furinkan. Wait a minute...  
  
The student gave the giant a flat-eyed look and pointed behind him. With one hand still holding the frightened student, the giant turned around and stared at the sign behind him, "Fu...rin...kan... High... School..." At- at last!!! I've finally MADE IT!!! He turned back to the student, "Tell me I'm not dreaming!!" The poor student nodded rapidly in response. "Now tell me where I can find Ranma Saotome!"  
  
"Uh, Saotome??" The student blinked in surprise, then began desparately searching the grounds for Ranma.  
  
------ The School-yard ------  
  
"Wait, Ranma! How DARE you? Come back here, you jerk! You heard me!!" Akane screamed at the laughing boy. She didn't even notice the weights she was wearing as she plowed through the student body in her quest to punish the evil perverted jerk who had tricked her into wearing said weights and was currently laughing his head off at her embarrassment.  
  
Said evil perverted jerk laughed out loud as he nimbly moved among the students without upsetting them in the slightest. An angry Akane was like a- a- Oh well. Forget the anology, an angry Akane was funny, but dangerous. He was glad he'd taken up the job of training her again.  
  
Suddenly his danger sense screammed at him and he glanced around in mid jump. On impulse he glanced up into the sun, where a shadowy figure descended directly toward him, screaming a battle cry, "RANDY, PREPARE TO DIE!!!"  
  
Desperately, he twisted his body to halt his momentum and landed on one hand in front of his attacker. They stared into each other's eyes for a split-second before Ranma pushed off and landed upright a fair distance away. Aparrently it was far enough because he landed at on the inside edge of a twenty foot crater that had appeared in the ground in the short moment that he was in the air.  
  
A shirtless giant wearing a pair of brown pants crouched in the middle of the crater, a huge hiking pack slung across his back. A red bamboo umbrella was stuck into the center of the crater at his feet. A tan and black striped bandana kept his black spikey hair out of his eyes, and tan furs were wrapped around his calves. He also appeared to be barefoot, just like Ranma.  
  
The giant slowly lifted the umbrella out of the ground and stared intently at the red-haired boy as he recovered from his unexpected landing, "Finally... I've found you... Ranma Saotome!" He grinned evilly.  
  
------ Eyecatch ------  
  
(Missed one last episode; Sorry!) Genma-panda juggles some peices of fruit and snatches them out of the air with his mouth. Then he spits them back out because they've been switched with some rocks in mid-air.  
  
------ End Eyecatch ------  
  
The giant stood up to his full height, an intimidating seven feet, two inches, and brandished his umbrella, "Long time no see, Ranma. I've been itching to finish our fight." Ranma stared at the him intently. All was quiet for a moment.  
  
Akane came up behind Ranma and bashed him into the ground, "Serves you right, you stupid jerk!" She huffed angrily a few times, then paused as she finally noticed the new arrival. She blinked at him a couple of times, then pulled Ranma out of the small crater he'd made when he hit the ground, "Hey, Ranma. D'you know this guy?"  
  
"No-no, Red. The snorkle hasn't been fed yet." he mumbled, dazed. Gingerly, he shook his head to clear it. He resumed staring at the giant in front of him.  
  
The new arrival stepped forward, glaring angrily, "I feel like I've been waiting for this very moment for thousands of years!"  
  
Akane looked back and forth between them, "Hey, you DO know him don't you?"  
  
Ranma scratched his chin with one hand and frowned in concentration.  
  
The giant lowered the umbrella, still glaring, "Don't tell me you don't recognise me??!  
  
Akane also glared at Ranma, "Come on! Do you know him or not??!  
  
Ranma stopped staring off in to the distance and pinched the bridge of his nose.  
  
The other boy stopped glaring for just a moment, "Y-You mean... You really don't recognise me??"  
  
Ranma shook his head rapidly. Then, "Aha!" he snapped his fingers and looked over at Akane, a big grin on his face.  
  
She leaned forward and looked at him, "Do you remember?"  
  
The giant stepped up to his face, "DO you remember??"  
  
Ranma paused, "Uuummmmmmmm..."  
  
Akane stared at him, flat-eyed, "I wouldn't want you to strain your brain, Ranma."  
  
"ENOUGH!! Forget the whole thing!! Let's just FIGHT!!!"  
  
Ranma perked up immediately, "Okay!" The sudents who had gathered around face-faulted.  
  
The red-haired boy and the black-haired giant faced off. Akane hesitated, but then moved back along with the rest of the student body. That giant had made a pretty big crater with his first attack, and who knew whether that was his strongest attack or not. Low whispers to that effect wafted through the air.  
  
"That guy's really strong!"  
  
"Yeah! D'you think Ranma can beat him?"  
  
"Nah, I think that was his strongest attack. I mean, nobody can be THAT strong!"  
  
"Yeah, but what if..." And the whispers continued.  
  
Akane watched intently as the two combatants stared at each other. Neither one of them moved. A long minute passed before Ranma held up his hand, "Before we start, I got a question for ya."  
  
The giant threw up his hands in exasperation, "I'm Ryoga Hibiki, for crying out loud!!! Or I was..."  
  
Ranma blinked, nonplussed, "Uh, That's nice. But that's not what I was gonna ask ya."  
  
"Oh." Ryouga deflated, then cocked his head to the side, "Then, what??"  
  
"What's the weather like up there?" The red-haired boy maintained a straight face while his question sank in.  
  
"What's the weather li. . . . . ." Ryouga trailed off, rage growing on his face. He crouched low and his battle aura shot up around him, an angry red-brown, "Why you!! I'll make you eat those words!!!"  
  
Akane paled, "What does Ranma think he's doing??! He's going get himself killed out there!!"  
  
Ranma merely smirked at the glowing giant, unfazed by the sizable aura he was putting out. Then he noticed the silvery-black metallic material rising out of the ground and wrapping itself around Ryouga's entire body. By the time it was finished, the giant was wearing an entire suit of armor. Then the gaps and joints sealed themselves together so that he was encased in the strange material, causing him to resemble a fancy golem. He slammed his hands together in front of himself, causing sparks to fly from the point of impact and creating a small shockwave.  
  
"Oh crap." Suddenly the red-haired boy was sweating bullets. Something in the back of his mind, specifically the area of his psyche where Randy's memories had taken up residence, told him that the black-haired giant was dead-serious already. He was suddenly struck with a memory from the dream he had had several weeks ago.  
  
---Randy drew his Crescent Knives from sub-space and let go of his Spirit-boosted strength to enhance his already blinding speed. Ryla drew her Katana, faded into the shadows, and hid her Spirit as best as she could. Jase switched places with Rocky, who summoned Tentite armor around his entire body. Surprisingly, the huge weight of the armor only seemed to make him stronger. His first punch slammed into the Entity's palms (much like Jase's had) and forced the Entity backward!---  
  
"Oh, shit. If that's what I think it is, I'm in trouble!" Ranma almost took a step backwards, but steeled his resolve. "Oh well. No use backing out now." He raised his aura and began gathering light-energy in preparation for a lightning bolt. It was easier to use his own Ki-energy for the process, but he needed to save all the energy he could. He hadn't even gathered half enough energy when Ryouga attacked.  
  
The giant swung an armor-clad fist at the shorter boy, who leaned to one side to avoid it. As expected, the punch missed. The air pressure -involved- in the punch -didn't-. Ranma spun across the length of the field before crashing into the side of the school hard enough to leave a crater. His body flashed as he released his hold on the light-energy he'd been storing and sank to the ground in a daze. "Oh yeah." he mumbled into the dirt. "I forgot how powerful he gets when he puts on that armor."  
  
At this point, most of the students heeded their screaming survival instincts and evacuated the area. A few of the braver ones stayed to watch Ranma get beaten up. Not that they didn't WANT Ranma to win, of course. But when a guy MISSES you and STILL hurls you all the way across the field hard enough to leave a crater in the side of the school, it's time to throw in the towel. Ranma, however, painfully pulled himself to his feet and smirked, "Betcha can't do THAT again." The remaining students began pounding their heads on the nearest solid object.  
  
Ranma drew himself into a crouch for a moment before he dashed across the field towards the armor-clad Ryouga, his aura going full blast. A couple of yards in front of the enraged Ryouga, he blurred from sight and reappeared behind the giant, sliding to a stop. Ryouga merely turned around to face him again, while Ranma shook his throbbing hands in a vain attepmt to rid them of the pain resulting from pounding on Tentite, a metal equal adamantium, with his bare hands, "O-ooooookay. Time for plan B."  
  
Ryouga stomped the ground in front of him, which sent a shockwave through the ground toward Ranma, who jumped out of the way. By the time he had landed, he had charged enough light-energy to point at Ryouga and fire a particularly large lightning bolt at him. It fizzled out against the Tentite armor. "Right. Earth negates Lightning. Time for plan C."  
  
The pony-tailed boy suddenly stopped and planted himself in front of Ryouga, "Get ready, Ryouga. 'Cause I ain't gonna hold back!! Saotome School of Anything-Goes Martial Arts Final Attack!!!" The golem-like Ryouga paused, readying himself for anything. "Ready! Set!! Run Away!!!" Ranma took off in the opposite direction from Ryouga.  
  
The living golem stood there stupidly for a few seconds before he realized what had happened and let out a wordless roar. His aura built up until it was visible even outside the Tentite shell encasing his body. Then he made the shell (and therefore himself) rise up off of the ground and fly after the fleeing boy, who was almost out of sight by now.  
  
Ranma darted through the streets like a pinball, knowing that Ryouga wouldn't be far behind. Okay, what I REALLY need need right now is some way of getting through that armor. Lessee, how did I do it while I was Randy? Wait a minute, how did Ryouga pick up Rocky's mastery of Earth?? Did the same thing happen to him that happened to Jack?? Wait a sec, who's Jack?? Aaargh!! Never mind, gotta concentrate! Um, where was I?? Ah, yes, the armor. Damn! If I had my Crescent Knives I might could pull it off, but I don't have 'em on me. Or do I?? Randy kept 'em in sub-space most of the time, so maybe I can still grab 'em.  
  
The red-haired boy turned a corner and stopped. Closing his eyes, he concentrated on Randy's weapons and reached behind him into sub-space. "Come on, come on, come on! Please work! Please! Please-please-please-please-please!!!" His hands closed on something and he pulled them forward, relief flooding his body, "Thank you!! Thank you, thank-" He opened his eyes and stared at the object in his hands. "...What the Hell??!"  
  
Instead of the Crescent Knives he had been aiming for, he held a long Staff. It appeared to be made entirely out of Tentite, and its six foot length came to a point at both ends. Engraved along its whole length was a stylized dragon, coiling around the metal in a spiral.  
  
Ranma stared at it, perplexed, "What the- Where the heck did THIS come from?? I mean, it's GOT to by Randy's, 'cause -I- certainly never had anything like this! But... I didn't know Randy had anything like this!" A nearby crash brought him back to the world and warned him that Ryouga was in the vicinity. "Well, I suppose I'll have to make do, somehow. Let's see what this baby can do!" He turned and jumped off in the direction of the crash he had heard.  
  
The pony-tailed boy hadn't gotten very far when he heard another crash, this one even further away. "What is that idiot DOING?? Oh wait, I forgot. He has a horrible sense of direction. RYOUGA!! Get back here!!!" He put on a burst of speed to catch up with the enraged boy.  
  
He had almost caught up the the rampaging golem known as Ryouga when he spotted the Sailor Senshi headed straight for it from the other direction. He grimaced, "I tell 'em to stay out of fights, and here they are. And they aren't even wearing my weights! But if they're doin' what I think they're doin', I need to take care of Ryouga before they get to 'im. Yeah. THEN I can punish 'em. Heh. Anyways, Ryouga first. I need some way to get through that armor of his."  
  
The red-haired boy glanced down at his newly acquired staff, taking note of the pointed ends. "Maybe if I throw this thing like a javelin, I can penetrate it." He gave it another glance, a dubious frown on his face, "Still, it'd cause a pretty big wound if it went too deep; I better be careful about this..." He gave another mighty leap and landed in front of the heavily armored Ryuoga, braced in a defensive stance with his staff.  
  
"Hold it, Ryouga! Calm down!" The berserk boy just gave another wordless roar and caused his armor to flow to the end of his arm and form a huge sword, more Tentite rising from the ground to replace what parts had been used to make the sword. "Whoa!!" Randy looked decidedly nervous at the sight of the shining silvery-black weapon, which was as tall as it's wielder. Which was pretty damn big. What the REAL cause of Ranma's nervousness, however, was the fact that Ryouga was wielding it easily. IN ONE HAND.  
  
Ryouga swung at Ranma in a wide arc, cutting through the air with a whistle. The pony-tailed boy jumped over the path of the swing, remembering what had happened to him when he thought he'd avoided Ryouga's punch. His fears were realized when the air pressure drom the swing slammed into a building behind him and caved the wall in. He caught a glimpse of the Sailor Senshi closing in at the peak of his jump and took a moment to estimate the time of their arrival on the way down. He'd have to hurry.  
  
He turned his attention back to Ryouga just in time to duck under another swing and stab at the armor encasing the other boy. He retreated and watched the small hole he'd made close itself up in satisfaction. Now he knew what he could do. Now he had a plan.  
  
Ranma jumped back, gaining some space to work within. He casually dodged another swing from Ryouga and started to charge his staff with Lightning. He ducked under a slice and realized he'd better pay a little more attention to the fight. A few strands of his hair floated down in front of his face as testament to the near miss.  
  
Ranma finished charging his staff with Lightning and reared his arm to throw it, but not before giving it another dubious glance, "Too bad this thing ain't smaller. I'd hate to think what would happen if I aimed wrong. I mean, I don't wanna KILL 'im, just knock 'im out..." He trailed off as the staff abruptly shrunk in his hands, leaving him with a needle-like shuriken full of Lightning. He blinked at it once, then smirked, "Perfect."  
  
He ran toward Ryouga, blurring from sight again. He weaved out of the path of one last attack from Ryouga and jumped over his head. Landing in back of the living golem, he threw the needle with all his might at the back of the armor. The results were spectacular.  
  
Ryouga began to turn as the needle closed in, but it was too late. The Lightning-charged projectile sank into his armor and into the flesh of his side, where Ranma released the charge within. A bright flash emmited from various cracks that suddenly appeared in the metal encasing the boy. Then it exploded, sending chunks of Tentite everywhere. Ranma was forced to avoid the pieces that were sent his way, watching as the rest slammed into the walls of the buildings around them. Some of the shrapnel sank into the walls, while most of them went straight through. In the center of the explosion stood a burnt and smoking Ryouga, who twitched spasmodically every once in a while.  
  
Ranma casually walked up to the twitching boy and snapped his fingers in front of Ryouga's face. There was no response. Ranma smirked, "Heh. Didn't think he'd react QUITE like that. Oh well."  
  
"Halt, evildoers! For the crime of- Eek!!" Sailor Moon was forced to cut off her speech as Ranma looked over at them and smirked, then clapped his hands together. A bright bolt of lightning slammed into the roof in front of them, blinding them long enough for Ranma to heave Ryouga's unconscious body over his shoulders and run off.  
  
Not leap off, jump off, or even hop off. Run off. Even unconscious, Ryouga's huge body weighed every bit as much as it looked like it did, probably more. It was putting a strain on Ranma's body to even run like this. He shrugged Ryouga's body into a better position and smirked. It was a good training opportunity.  
  
He mildly regretted not stopping to punish the Sailor Senshi, but he figured he could get them later. Right now he had to get some answers from Ryouga. Like how he had mastered the Earth like Rocky. Or why he was so angry with him when they'd met. Or how he had gotten here in the first place.  
  
Speaking of which, where WAS "here"?? Ranma stopped and looked around, a sweat-drop appearing on his head, "Ooookaay... Where am I??"  
  
------ End Episode 07 ------  
  
Author's Notes: Well, there it is; Episode 07. More plot twists again. Ryouga appears to have mastered Earth, Akane has started to train again, and the Senshi get very little air time. And if the end if this one seems like it was rushed, that's because it was.  
  
If you still have any questions regarding the Elements, e-mail me and I'll try to answer them.(Check my profile for E-mail info.) I've pretty much covered all I'm going to about the Elements and how they work in the story. Also, tell me if you want me to bring in more of the Elemental fighters, or if should I quit while I'm ahead. I wasn't originally intending to bring in more than Lightning and maybe Earth, but if you review and let me know, I may change my mind!  
  
Hello?  
  
Anyone out there?  
  
Anybody?  
  
sighs 


End file.
